Happy Now?
by Sage of the Cinnabun
Summary: Gaje isn't a happy person, he's usually tucked inside his room sitting, fermenting in a pot of his own thoughts. On one particular dull afternoon he decides to take a bath. The bath that leads him into a meeting with a spirit, his own. He's given an option to stay and live his mundane life, or start anew in a place he holds dear to his heart. Why even doubt what he chooses.
1. The Ripples in The Water

**A/N: This is the first story I've ever shared, so any and all feedback is appreciated, no matter how harsh lol.**

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 **A/N #2: I am revising the earlier chapters, they'll have the same basis, but with some finer detail.**

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I let the water overtake my body, the warmth rose up to my neck. The water waved back and forth, leaking over the side of the tub. It was the first time I had taken a bath in nearly a decade; I thought it would be relaxing, but with how small the tub was and how much space I took up, it was a tight fit. I briskly sat up and reached for the soap, squeezing out the goop onto my hand. I ran my hands through my hair, loosening the knots and I brought a small cup up from the side of the tub to fill with water. I poured it over my head, pulling my hair down with it over my eyes and ears. I looked out the door, my dog was staring at me through the hallway. I must have looked like Swamp Thing, because he dropped down to his front paws in attack mode. I tucked the hair behind my face and he rose back up, walking away.

I grabbed my hair band and slid it up my wrist; I twisted my hair and fixed it into a ponytail. "Ah, much better." I said, leaning back into the wall. But, as I stopped, expecting the wall to support my weight, I felt nothing. The water rushed over me and I tried to sit up, but I couldn't. I panicked and tried to shoot up to the surface, but something was sucking me down. It was as if an orca had taken ahold of me, dragging me down to ease its kill. I sank deeper into the water, the bathroom light faded out of sight. My lungs were punching at my chest, crying out, "give us air!" I felt everything going numb, my eyes twitched and like a blanket pulled over my head, all went dark.

 _Drip_... _drip_... _drip_...

My eyes opened, I was lying on a wet floor, my clothes were stuck to my skin. I struggled, rising to my feet. I looked around, it was pitch black, but every so often the whole room would illuminate. Water above shot like bullets at a gargantuan wall just 50 feet in front of me. The wall had a large waterfall cascading over, it glowed with every shot of water that smacked into it in multiple colors. Blue, red, green, repeat, like a stoplight.

It seemed to be calling me over. I started to move, but quickly noticed the ground below me, was pure water. I stopped my foot mid-air, nearly falling over myself. I touched it with my toes and continued to press my weight fully down. I relaxed, it seemed to be solid enough for me to walk over. My feet slapping against it with every step was equivalent to a penguin on snow. The bright light filled my vision, I reached out to the wall, pushing it past the water. It was a pleasant feeling, not the one I was expecting. A light drizzle trickled over my arm, collecting at my elbow and falling to the ground.

"Hello Gaje."

I whipped my head around to the sound. A large humanoid figure made from water stood just before me. Its skin jotted out like geysers, spewing water every directing. "Who, are you?" I asked, feeling an immense pressure in my throat.

"I am all, and none." The cryptic message cleared all stress I had for the moment.

"What the fuck does that mean?"

"I am what you would call-"

"God?" I interrupted, it would be unfortunate if he was, I wasn't exactly a religious person.

"No, I am your spirit."

"My... spirit?"

His head nodded, the water flowing through his skin halted, a mini wave pushed around his scalp. The water moved like a computer's water coolant system. "Yes, your spirit."

"Wh-why am I here?" I felt an overwhelming chill resting in my stomach, I wasn't afraid, not in mind. But I had a gut feeling that this was not something I should take lightly.

"You are here because I have come to offer you a chance at happiness."

Happiness. He came to offer me happiness? I was skeptical, but this area was already more supernatural than I could have imagined, so I listened carefully. He did not answer with words, but a single movement. His body swirled into a waterspout and shot at the wall. It roared and shifted about into a live feed of my home. I could see my dog, Petey, walking through the living room, licking an empty water bowl.

"You can go back to your home, live the mundane life you have been. The water shifted again, morphing into an image of the club room of Doki Doki. "Or, you can live here, in this world you so desperately crave."

It was too good to be true, but only two people knew of my deep desire to be there. "What's the catch?" I asked, inspecting the walls frozen yet flowing water.

"The catch, is that it is not exactly like the game. It's how you imaged the world would be as well as the characters." The image turned to Monika's face. "This girl, will no longer be a threat, she'll have no more power, and you… you will take over as its god, able to do anything you want. But, it is up to you whether or not you'll use the powers given."

"A god?" This was like the world's best edition of Deal or No Deal. I swallowed and looked back to him, "you said, Monika won't have her powers, how about the others? Have they changed at all?"

"They'll remain the same, their issues and quirks, but they aren't altered to the extent they were before." His comment brought Sayori to mind, I couldn't bare seeing her depressed, her sad smile was a knife in my heart.

But, could I give up that opportunity? I chuckled, I had a conversation like this with a friend of mine, albeit not with the same rules. "Would you give up everything to be there?" He asked. My answer came within in second, I was in a bad place and this game was one of the only outlets I had to feel anything except for angst.

"Yes, of course I would..." I said in a joking manner, but it was nothing less than the truth. Even if I had to kill someone, nothing would prevent me from attaining it. I was okay leaving behind my life, all my possessions, if I had to. The water spirit was patient, still waiting for my answer. My head rose up, I looked at the image with a determined grin. "I want to go... but, could I make a request?"

"Go on." The spirit spun off the wall, taking his humanoid figure beside me once again.

My mind was stuck on that water bowl, if there was anything that gained my sympathy, it was animals. "Could I fill his water bowl? My dog that is."

"Unfortunately if you leave to your home, you will remain there. However, you may bring him with you if you'd like."

"I'm allowed to bring him?"

"Of course, animals don't interrupt the process, unlike humans, the process to bring them is much more complicated." The water beside me opened like a sinkhole. It was completely black, though I could see at the very bottom, a white dot slowly rising and growing in size. When it popped up I realized it was Petey. He was scratching his ears and licking the air. I reached out and assisted his mission, making his leg kick out of reflex much faster.

"Sorry for not filling your bowl." I said quietly.

The wall began glowing, a loud hum rumbling the ground and our bodies. "Are you ready to leave?" Asked the spirit.

Petey lapped up the floor, drinking from the likely divine water. "I'm ready." I said. I grabbed Petey's collar so he wouldn't run off. Water spun up from below us, enclosing a large water bubble. Petey's fur shone, the water cleansing his dirt speckled hair. I checked off my mental list, he no longer required a shower. My spirit waved at us, he disappeared from my sight and the world blanked out again…

A bright white filled my eyes, wind blew into my face, peeling my skin back like a banana peel. My heart nearly stopped as I realized I was falling. Falling from the heavens down to Earth. I crashed through the clouds instantly bringing my body temperature down. My body shook, the frigid air chilling the water droplets that had collected on my clothes. Houses and trees became visible as I neared the end of my skydive. I needed to yell or I was going to pass out. " **AHH** - **HAHAHA**." I laughed hysterically at the high pitch of my scream. "Ah… **AHHHHHHH**!" I put my hands over my face, I was going to die.

In five, four, three, two, one… **_CRASH_**.


	2. I'm Here

I came to, I was was tucked in tightly to the MC's bed. The clothes I was wearing during my fall had been replaced by loose pajamas. I looked around in awe, my heart nearly burst from excitement. I shoved the covers from my grasp and burst through the door. "I knew it wasn't a dream! Fuck yes!" I quickly ran down the stairs to the living room, finding Petey curiously sniffing the couch.

"Petey!" I yelled running up behind him. His entire body wagged with his tail. I held him, "we're here!" He didn't understand me, but from my tone he knew to be overjoyed. "You'll love this place." How could he not, the house was already 100 times nicer than ours, and the air conditioning worked.

My head turned to the kitchen, seeing the towering metallic fridge. My mouth salivated at the thought of food, I was starving, drowning and falling really puts a number on your hunger. I opened the fridge doors to the heavenly backlit box. There was fresh vegetables and ingredients scattered all throughout the inner cabinets. I hugged the entire fridge, "I love you." I said. I grabbed some bread and jam for a sandwich and promptly crashed onto the couch, devouring it.

Petey sat at the end of the couch, his eyes pleading for a small taste. I held my hand out, blocking his curious sniffing, but to my dismay he put my hand in his mouth, coating it in slobber. "Petey!" I pulled back, "agh, come on dog, this is disgusting." I washed my hands in the sink and tossed the napkins in the trash bin.

I stood, thinking about what to do. I noticed the time on the oven, it was six-fifteen. So if there was school today, I had already missed it, or the MC had attended it and I took his spot. Which meant, he was likely dead. Or, lost in a one dimensional hole of existential nightmares. Either way, I didn't care. I found myself cursing my mind, I should have brought my laptop along when I left. I pursed my lips in thought, maybe the MC had a laptop or computer in his room. I walked back upstairs, leaving Petey to relish in his new back scratching carpet.

I was in for a surprise, most definitely, when I walked through the door frame. Right on the desk in the corner of the room was my laptop, in all its beaten glory. The screen had a black blot on the top right corner and some of the key letters were missing. I hit the power button and entered my pin at the login menu. It opened up and I came face to face with my Sayori wallpaper. I smiled and brushed the screen, right where her hair was.

My eyes veered to the bottom of the taskbar to check the date. It was March 23rd, 2018. I seemed to have arrived just at the beginning of the spring season. It was a Friday as well, which meant that I had to wait til Monday before I could attend the club. "Damn..." I muttered closing the lid, completely forgetting why I had even turned it on. I dejectedly crawled back into the twin sized bed, staring at the roof.

"...You will be its god." The voice of my spirit echoed into my head. I figured it was most likely a joke, but who knew, he could have been serious. I closed my eyes and pictured a phone. Something weighed down my pant pocket, I reached in and pulled out the phone I pictured. I laughed, I couldn't believe it. I had newfound energy, I jumped up out of the bed and ran to the window, what more could I do?

I held out my hands, looking over the backyard. The ground split like the Red Sea, it moved apart more and more. Concrete covered all of the mud and began filling up with water, turning it into a large rectangular pool. I closed my eyes, then opened them, instantly I had transported to the yard. My head craned to the window, then back down. "Sweeeeet."

I took inspiration from Bruce Almighty, pointing finger guns into the direction of where I wanted to do something. A large cabinet here, pool chairs there, a large fence to cover the area, and a bar at the end; it was like a resort. I clapped my hands, changing out of my pajamas into my usual clothing, t-shirt and gym shorts. I jumped up, then descended like a delicate leaf onto the pool surface.

The sky was a vast open blue, the sun smiled at me, and I smiled back. I held my hand up, curious to see if this would work. I swiped left, the sky not a suitable candidate for a date. The night sky took its place, but it wasn't the right one for me. I repeated, bringing the blue sky back. My phone levitated above me, I had fast forwarded to the early morning on Monday.

I flew out of the pool and blinked back to my room. It was time, time to meet everyone, time to see Sayori, time for my new life. I didn't care that I had to attend school again, we were all seniors anyways, so one year wouldn't hurt. I dried my clothes off, I didn't want to be uncomfortably moist for the remainder of the day. I went to leave my room, "wait..." My head dropped. "There's a uniform."

I opened the MC's closet, depressed and disappointed. I took down a hanger and changed into it. I actually didn't mind it like I thought I would, it was snug for sure, but it was comfortable and allowed plenty of movement. I ran down the stairs, grabbing a small backpack that laid against the door, I assumed it must have been the previous homeowners. "Mine now." I said opened the door. "Be good Petey!" I shut the door and ran through the gate, out into the beautiful neighborhood.

I really wanted to see Sayori in person. I ran down the sidewalk, I recalled her house was just next door. I waited just outside her gate, I knew she was probably oversleeping, but I could wait. A little over fifteen minutes and the gate creaked. Sayori walked out, her hair unkempt and her collar partially uneven. "Gonna be late again..." She mumbled.

She turned around, coming face to face with me. "AH! O-oh..." she pressed her hand to her chest. "G-Gaje? Jeez you really scared me!" She tapped my shoulder angrily, but calmed down rather quickly.

"My bad, didn't mean to startle you, I was just waiting." She was exactly as I had pictured, a caring voice, disheveled hair, the slight buckling of her knees, those oceanic eyes. She was beautiful. I couldn't take my eyes off of her.

"It's okay." She said. "Wait, how long were you out here for?"

"Like twenty minutes or so." I replied. "I didn't mind waiting." That and I had no clue where to go. I didn't exactly have a map of the city.

"Why were you waiting for so long? Is there something wrong?"

"No, nothing like that... I just thought, we could walk to school together."

Her face brightened up, the light in her eyes shone out. "Okay! Yeah, let's go!" Her bag jumped up with her as we started strolling down the sidewalk.

"Oh yeah, have you decided on what club you're going to join?" She asked.

I battled with the thoughts in mind, should I just do what the MC did in the game? Or do something new? Maybe a little of both. "No clue... you have a club right?" She nodded.

"The Literature Club!"

"I'll check some out, maybe you can show me yours as well."

She beamed at me, "sure!"

We crossed the road, wafted through the other students making their trip, and finally passed through the school's archway. The building was something of a university, it towered over every building nearby, it didn't belong. Large cherry blossom trees graced the entrance with shade, a small pond with flora outlining it sat on the ground.

We moved inside the school, unlike outside it was much more lively, students yelling across to each other as they made their way to class, the squeaking of shoes, and the clanking of lockers closing. Sayori caught me staring off at nothing, she tugged at my blazer. "Hey, Gaje?"

I snapped out of it and looked down, "Y-yeah?"

"I got to get to class, so I'll catch you after school!" She turned, her shoes squealing. I watched her disappear down the hall and past the corner. Her familiar scent dissipated and I was left to figure out where to go.

I looked around, "hey, excuse me?" I grabbed the attention of another student. "Could you point me to the direction of the office?"

"Yeah, sure man." He pointed down the hallway Sayori had just gone through. "It's down that hall, take a left, then it's the first door on the right."

"Cheers." I nodded and walked through the hall as well. I opened the office door, the walls were thick, blocking all the loud sounds of the bustling hallway. I caught the eye of a man sitting behind the counter. He was a jolly man, short hair and a prospering beard.

"Hello there, how can I help you?"

"Yeah, I, can't exactly recall my classes, and I was wondering if I could trouble you for another copy?"

"Of course, what's your name?"

"Gaje L-"

"Gaje." He said, typing it into the computer. "Ah, there you are." I guess he didn't require my last name. Spelling out Laqor was a double edged sword to me, it was easy, but confused most people. It had no meaning, though it did sound cool. "If you'll just go over there, the printer will give you a copy." He gestured to the wall where the large machine resided.

"Thanks." I moved over and grabbed the freshly made warm paper. I left the room, paper in hand. "Calculus, World History, English 4, and Chemistry 101... No fun classes like art or foods?" I sighed and folded it up. I walked through the emptying halls and found myself at the door of the calculus class. It was not something I looked forward to, I hated math. But, I could just cheat my way through it again.

"Here goes nothing."


	3. Welcome to the Club

The bells rang as I crossed over the threshold. Barely on time, that's the Gaje way. At least unlike every other time, the first day of school wouldn't have me passing out in one of my classes. I moved to the back of the room, avoiding the glaring eyes of all who noticed my entrance. I placed my bag on the floor, but noticed a small hook on the side of the desk and remembered, they were designed for backpacks. I looped the strap over it and took out my notebook and pencil.

I wiggled the pencil between my fingers, waiting for today's lesson to start. What could we have possibly be learning?

The teacher answered my thoughts, coming up to the chalkboard in all of his finest golfing clothes. Chalk hit the board and he began speaking, without announcing anything prior. "The inverse of this operation is the act of going backwards and recreating the argument..." he made a cross on the board, "x, from the value, f(x) of f." He lowered his hand and showed the problem to us.

I was not about to waste my time in my dream world on math. I stared to the small clock at the side of the room. The hands began spinning.

"Class dismissed."

I looked to the front, the chalkboard was covered in random functions and formulas. I stood up, looking around at the others, they weren't acting any different, at least for the most part. I walked out with them. "Don't forget we have a quiz tomorrow!" The teacher yelled, making the people surrounding me audibly groan.

"I hope Mr. Anderson dies." One of them said. I felt that was unnecessary, they were such dastardly children.

I went through the same process in my other classes, realizing that today's history lesson was all compacted into a small video that seemed to be made by 4th graders. I threw all my care for the other classes out the window and just skipped to the end of the day.

I knew Sayori was going to come find me, she probably knew what class I was in, so I just waited outside the English room. The sun was barely shining through the windows at the end of the hall, beside the stairs. The air conditioner whirred louder as the halls became devoid of people. I bobbed my body back and forth, checking the halls every so often for any sign of movement.

"Gaje!" I looked to my right at the cutesy girl fumbling over to me. She had fixed her hair as well as she could have, no strands poked out. "Phew," she exhaled, leaning down to rest herself on her knees. "I'm tired." Sayori huffed and got back to her full standing stature.

"You walked like 20 feet." I pointed out.

"I was walking fast though! So it took more energy."

I smirked, "I suppose you're right about that."

"Are you ready to see my club? I'm sure you'll love it!"

"Shouldn't I check out the other ones first?" She pushed her fingers together, nervously averting her gaze. I moved my head aside to see her reddish face. "What?"

"I kind of already told everyone you'd join... ehehe..."

"Oh, alright... then to the Literature Club we go."

"Huh? You're not mad? No noogie?" She eyed me suspiciously, as to ask, "where's the real Gaje?" I slowly moved my hand over to her confused face. "W-what are you d-ah!" I ground my hand into her hair. "Ow! S-stop!" She giggled and pushed away. "I knew you were gonna do it!"

I laughed wholeheartedly and nodded to the side. "Let's go."

She grabbed my hand unexpectedly and pulled me along, she knew the quickest route. I struggled to keep up as she sprinted up the stairs. "H-hey Sayori, can we slow down!?"

She ignored my pleas, this was her way of exacting revenge. My near lifeless body was being kicked up and down the hall, my shoes painfully shrieking on the waxed floors. She slowed down as we neared the room. I got to my feet, exhausted and pressed up against the wall.

She opened the door and shouted out, "new member!" Her arms were open, presenting me to the room. I swallowed nervously and moved over into everyone's sight.

I raised my hand still feeling nauseous. "H-hi, name's Gaje."

They were all eager to see me. It went just like the game, having them welcome me one by one, Natsuki's complaint of a boy joining them, then all of us taking a seat in the back, eating and drinking together.

"What do you guys do in the club anyways?" I asked Monika.

She washed down her cupcake with some tea, "nothing really, everyone pretty much does their own thing, so long as it pertains to literature. Natsuki reads her manga in the closet, though we all know that it's not actual literature."

"Manga. Is. Literature." Natsuki said sternly.

Monika shrugged her off, "Yuri reads her books in the back, and Sayori... well she does her own thing." Monika sipped the remains of her tea, passing the cup to the middle with the rest of the empty ones. "Though, there is something I have been planning on bringing up…" She pulled out a crumpled up piece of paper and flattened it out on the desk, taking the attention of Sayori and I. "Somebody… has been writing a bit of poetry." Her glare shot to Natsuki.

Natsuki's face dropped, her cheeks flushed a shade of red beyond crimson. "T-that's not... RGH, Monika give it back!" She reached over the table, knocking the trays over. Monika held her arm out.

"But it's so cute Natsuki!"

"No it's not!"

I tried to ease myself into the conversation, "h-hey if it's any consolation, I like writing poems as well."

Natsuki shot her eyes to me, her embarrassed grimace flipped to just a frown. "You? Write poems? That's a laugh."

"Yes." I replied. Monika handed Natsuki the paper after the teasing had finished, Natsuki immediately stuffed into her skirt pocket. "We could share our writing if you want." I said.

"No way!"

Yuri picked up the fallen cups and stacked the tray off to the side for safety. "I-I think what Natsuki's trying to say is that she doesn't feel comfortable sharing with others... I'm the same way.."

"So, you write too Yuri?" I raised my brows.

"A-ah, y-yes... I dabble here and there." She mumbled.

"Well looks like we're all poets then." Monika jumped into the conversation smiling. We all looked at her quizzically.

"You write too Monika?" Yuri asked, shocked and intrigued.

"Yep! But..." she looked at Sayori with encouraging eyes, "I'm not the only one over here, isn't that right Sayori?"

"Hehe, they're not as good as yours Monika." Sayori replied embarrassed, scratching the back of her neck.

"Don't be so modest Sayori, your poems are fantastic."

"It seems we've all dipped our pens into the metaphorical ink we call poetry." I said, attempting to sound poetic.

"It seems so!" Monika gladly agreed, a look of realization washed over her. "That gives me a great idea, why don't we all write poems, then we can share them with one another!"

The instant loss of blood in Natsuki's and Yuri's face, priceless. Sayori had her mouth agape, her eyes twinkling with excitement. Yuri looked to me, the blood returning to her cheeks. "I-I guess…" she got quieter with every word, "I can try, if I can, share with Gaje."

With everyone else seemingly on board, Natsuki was forced to answer. An answer most likely topped with peer pressure. "Ugh, fine, same." She threw her hands up, dropping them down bluntly on the table.

"It's gonna be so much fun!" Sayori cheered.

"I'm down." I said.

Monika pulled her chair out and stood, "then it's decided. Tomorrow, we'll all write and share a poem. With that, club dismissed."

We scattered; Yuri and Natsuki clearing the tables, Monika moving the chairs and desks back, Sayori and me walking to the door. Sayori tapped me on the shoulder, "c'mon Gaje, can we walk home together?"

"Sure." I replied, sliding the bag over my arm.

We opened the double-doors to the schoolyard. The sky was a lovely shade of orange, spots of purple clouds and wandering leaves only added to its beauty. We walked through the neighborhood, backtracking from this morning. Sayori had a permanent smile etched into her skin the entire duration of our walk, I figured me joining must have put her into a good mood, and that made me glad.

"I'm really glad you joined Gaje." She craned her head around to my face. "You'll love it."

I looked up in response, "yeah, I am too, it'll be fun." We walked for a few moments before I felt the need to ask. "So, the others, have you known them for long?"

"I've known Monika for two years, but who doesn't heh, she's really popular." She paused to collect her thoughts. "I met Yuri and Natsuki last year at the festival while Natsuki was handing out cupcakes for her Foods class. Yuri was sitting in the bleachers reading alone when I bumped into her."

"So I take it you invited Natsuki and Yuri to the club?"

"Nope, Monika invited them a few days after I joined."

I nodded, it wasn't a shock that she did, with her popularity, I'm sure she heard a lot of gossip about other students. Maybe someone had told her about the purple haired girl who keeps to herself, or the pompous pink haired girl with a sour attitude.

"Well, I'm glad you have more friends than just me." We stopped, just outside of her house. "I'll see you tomorrow Sayori."

She looked up confusingly at the house, "oh," probably forgetting where we were. She opened the gate. "Don't forget to write your poem! I'll see ya tomorrow."

"I won't, bye."

 **Clunk.**

I opened the door to my new house, a welcoming gift awaited me, in the form of a putrid smell. A smell of piss, and shit, rising up and coiling into my nose. I pinched my nose and snapped my fingers, clearing the terrible odor and stains.

"Petey!" I yelled, feeling the shaking of my vocal chords. I waited, looking at the hall and stairs for a sign of the pup. I heard scratching on the wood upstairs and immediately saw Petey tumbling down, nearly smacking into the wall. He jumped around me, licking at my hands and scratching my pants. "You dumbass." I pat his head. "You hungry?"

His tail wagged, his entire body following its command. I whipped up a bowl of food and water and placed them in the hall by the laundry room, far away from the carpet. I left to the kitchen, he had his hunger satisfied, but then it was my turn. I had no desire to cook something, I was in a rush.

My mind jumped to seafood, then to crabs, and then crab legs. Oh, I loved crab legs, the soft white meat, the slather of butter to add even more delectable flavoring. I snapped my fingers, producing a plate of them on the counter. They were already cracked open, allowing a simple tug to pull the meat from the shell.

I dunked it into the melted butter and slurped it down, melting my taste buds. "This is fucking amazing." I burped loudly, Petey looked over like a deer caught in the headlights. I finished the rest of the meal and moved to my room.

I flopped onto the bed, it was firm, but still able to rock back and forth. I had to write a poem, something I actually enjoyed doing. But the problem was that I couldn't formulate an idea at the time. I was at a loss. You'd think going to a new world, seeing a character you fell in love with for real, that I would have something in mind. But, no, I was floating on a sea of nothingness.

In the end I went with a poem I had written before, an unnamed poem about a vulture searching for food.

* * *

 _The sky set in blue stone as a bird soars_

 _Its wings, spread, casts a shadow_

 _The vulture breathes briskly_

 _letting its cries echo throughout the valley_

 _A skeleton was left behind,_

 _illuminated by the moonlight._

 _It swoops down, claws nearing the hard earth_

 _The vulture's sharp talons scrape the bone_

 _causing a sound of agonizing screeching_

 _The carcass of the animal was without meat,_

 _leaving the bird hungry still_

 _Hungry for more, he sets off in search of sustenance,_

 _satiation of food a quondam for the poor creature_

 _Woe is the bird, woe is he._

* * *

I looked it over, I had improved upon it a little. Before, it was in paragraph form, more like a short story. I put the notebook down on the foot of my bed and rolled on my side. "Time to sleep!"

 ** _BARK!_**

I opened my eyes, Petey was at the side of my bed, snaking about impatiently. "After I let you out." I said.


	4. New Routine

The sun shone through the curtains, piercing my eyes with its ungodly brightness. I turned over and opened my phone, taking in another ungodly light. It was 7:04. That marked the beginning of my new daily routine, and I was shaking with excitement.

I took a quick shower, grabbed my change of clothes, ate some breakfast, then let Petey out. I ruffled his hair and moved his bowls outside with him. "I'll be back soon." I said. "Be good." He was well-behaved, the other day was my fault.

I ran out the door and walked up to Sayori's house, meeting her as she walked out of the gate.

"Morning Sayori." I said, holding a hand up.

"Morning!" Unlike yesterday she had her hair made, and her uniform's ribbon was perfectly tied.

"Sleep well?"

"Mhm! I dreamt about bacon knights and egg soldiers having a war for the hand of the sausage princess."

I laughed through my nose, "that's just like you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Her brows furrowed slightly.

"Food." It was all I needed to say for her to understand.

She bowed her legs and pressed her index fingers together, "ehehe..."

"Well, anyways, did you do your poem last night?"

"Yep! All done." She stood straight and began walking normally again.

"Can I see?" I was curious to see whether or not it was the same poem as in the game.

"Nope! You have to wait til the club."

"Please?" I raised my pitch and used my sad frown to guilt trip her, but as I should've guessed.

"Nuh-uh!" She shook her head aggressively.

"Awww, c'mon."

"Mmm mmm."

I dropped my head in defeat, "fine... could you at least tell me what it's about?"

"It's nothing really notable." She said pressing her hand onto the button at the crosswalk. It most definitely was notable, if it was the same one, then I could confirm how she feels.

We crossed the street. The cars engines were sputtering and murmuring that roar of mechanical parts. As we furthered ourselves on the path we began meeting patches of student groups, couples and friends. We slid through and made it to the school.

Sayori and I walked down the hall, I stood by her as she shuffled through her lockers.

"What's up?" She asked.

"O-oh, nothing, I was just... waiting I guess."

"Oh alright." She closed her locker. "Well I got to go, I'll see you at the club, later!"

"See ya."

I trudged through the hall making my way to math class, when I reached my hand out to the door, I stopped. Did I even have to go through this? I didn't. I walked through the halls, coming to a doorway that lead out to the courtyard.

There was a large fountain in the middle of the courtyard, surrounded by a small circle of brick layered flooring. A small bench was in front of it, it had small specks of water on its head. I sat down on it, taking on the cool water that shot out of the fountain.

"Gaje? What are you doing out here?"

I turned my head, Yuri was standing to the left of the fountain, gently clasping onto a book.

"Oh, hey Yuri." I waved. "I'm... kind of skipping, what are you doing out here?"

"I don't have a first period class. I come out here to read." She nervously walked over, looking around. "Uh, c-can I sit down here?"

"S-sure." I scooted over, pushing my side into the armrest. She slowly sat, her shoulders relaxed and she breathed in deeply. I noticed the book in hand, Portrait of Markov. The glowing eye on the cover wasn't as creepy as the game let on.

"Whatcha reading there?" I asked.

"U-uh Portrait of Markov."

"What's it about?"

She did a quick flip through and closed the book. "Well, it's about this girl in high school who moves in with her long-lost sister..."

I bobbed my head, showing I was truly listening to what she had to say. "That's, pretty interesting. I'll have to check it out later."

She turned slightly in her seat, "d-do you want to read it now?"

"Oh, sure."

She dug into her bag and pulled out another book of the same title. It was in mint condition, like the one she had. The book landed on my lap, I picked it up and opened it. I scooted over a little, to get more comfortable. "Don't worry about reading too fast." I said.

The story began picking up around the fifth chapter, I looked over when the tension began building, Yuri's eye seemed to be glaring past the page, like she was seeing it playing out in front of her.

We stopped at the sixth chapter and I tried handing it back to her. "Here."

"N-no it's okay, you keep it."

"Oh, alright, well. It was fun, I'd like to do it again sometime."

"Yeah, perhaps tomorrow... well, til then." She picked up her bags and walked into the building.

"You too."

I yawned as the door closed, I was pretty tired, I hadn't slept yet. I laid my head on the bench and closed my eyes...

Though, I was immediately awakened by the bells ringing. I groaned and picked my head up, the sun was directly overhead shining down on me. I pulled out my phone, it was three... twenty-six.

"What!?" In my mind, it was only 10 seconds, I was so confused. I rolled off the bench, falling to the grass, but I caught myself with my arms and began running inside. I shuffled up the stairs and ran down the halls, the club was just around the corner. I caught my breath and opened the door, everyone looked to me.

"Glad to see you made it!" Monika said as I took my seat.

"Yeah... I kind of fell asleep out in the courtyard."

"In the courtyard?"

"Yeah."

"Hm, well that's a relief, I thought you were just debating whether or not to come back. Truth be told, we kind of need you for the club to stay official."

"Really?" I knew that.

"Yep, so you're a real life saver, we couldn't find anyone else... Thankfully Sayori brought you." She clasped her hands together and sat back in her chair. "Well, we'll get started soon, but til then feel free to hang out with everyone."

"Alright, thanks."

I looked around the club, Sayori was drawing, Yuri was reading, and Natsuki was hidden in the closet. I pushed myself off of the desk and wandered over, I was curious to see what Natsuki was doing. I stood at the closet doors, watching as she organized her books on the bottom shelf. I could tell she was getting irate, her hand movements increased in jerkiness.

"Do you need help?" I asked.

She whipped her head around, "need help? With what?"

"Y-you look like you're trying to find something."

"If you want to help me, tell MONIKA, to stop moving my manga!" Her loud yelling pierced my ears, everyone else heard her just as clearly as I did.

"It's on the top." Monika said back, which made Natsuki slouch down angrily.

"Here, let me." I walked over and reached to the top shelf, stepping onto a small step ladder. I sifted through the textbooks and grabbed a smaller book, a manga. She looked up at the book with joy and snatched it from me when I stepped down.

She slid the book into the box, her face instantly changed to relief. "Ah, perfect." She turned to me, after placing down the manga's case. "Hey, do you read manga?"

"Not a lot, but I can." I seemed to have lit a fuse in her, she grabbed the recently placed book out and walked out and sat down under the window sill. She patted the floor beside her and laid the manga in her lap.

"Sit, come on." She said.

I sat and tilted my head to see the cover. It reminded me of Sailor Moon. It was Parfait Girls though, made evident by the vast majority of sweets on the screen, and the title.

"If you're gonna judge." She growled.

"I'm not." I assured her.

"Okay..." She flipped through to the first page. We started reading, the story was interesting, though the characters were kind of... off. They appeared normal, but you could see they were each hiding something. As time went on I could tell Natsuki was inching closer to me, which allowed me more vision of the book.

She giggled and pointed down at the book "ahaha, I forgot all about that." The characters were slinging icing at each other. There was a familiar looking tray of cupcakes in the book as well.

"Hey, those cupcakes look just like the ones you made."

She nervously chuckled, "y-yeah they do."

"Did you get the idea fr-"

"No! It's just a coincidence."

Sure it was.

"Okay everyone, time to share your poems!"

Natsuki moaned, "awww c'mon! We just got to the best part."

Monika looked over to us sitting. "Oh, sorry to interrupt.. you two look comfortable."

Natsuki looked down at how close we were, "ah!" She pushed me away and stood up, her cheeks red. I shrugged it off and walked over to my desk, pulling out my poem

I walked to Sayori first, she jumped for the opportunity to see my writing. "Give it! I wanna see!"

"Okay, okay! Calm down, here." I handed over the sheet, she laughed and started reading through.

"This is really good!" She smiled brightly. "Okay my turn!" She produced her paper and pushed it into my chest.

It was just as I expected, the same poem from the game. Relatively serious til the last line I chuckled, "took some cues from your dream didn't you?"

"What? I like breakfast, ehehe..."

"Me too." I handed the poem back over. "It's pretty good."

"I'll make sure tomorrows is even better!"

"I'll hold you to it."

"You can count on me!"

I slouched over, feeling kind of stupid that I didn't say much of use. I walked over to Yuri next, we had talked so it'd be less awkward on both sides.

"Ah, Gaje, I was looking forward to seeing your writing." She said, smiling slightly.

"You were?" I asked.

"Y-yes, I was hoping to ascertain the nature of your writing from the poetry you present."

"Ah, that's interesting."

"I d-didn't mean to come off as weird or something, I apologize."

"No you're fine. Here." I held out my poem and she gently grabbed ahold. I nervously looked around at the ground while she read, I wasn't sure if she'd like it.

"How long have you been writing?" Her eyes peeked over the top of the paper.

"I started writing almost 8-9 years ago, but I only started writing seriously last year."

"Well, I can certainly see the potential in your writing, the emotion's there as is the imagery, you keep going down this route and you'll succeed in no time."

"Thanks." She handed my paper back and then she gave me hers. It was written in perfect cursive on a clean piece of paper from a composition notebook. "Sorry if it's not long I wanted to hold back for the first day."

"That's fine, I don't think the length of the poem matters, it's the emotion and writing." I said and she smiled. "Besides, it is a good poem." She kept staring, I guess expecting more criticism from me, but I had nothing else to add, so it was mostly awkward silence until I handed her the paper back.

"W-well, I'm gonna go share with the others…" I said.

"Alright." She said, walking away."

Monika looked bored as she sat at the forefront of the room, twiddling her thumbs. I took a seat on the other side of the desk and pushed myself closer to the table.

"Ah Gaje, how are you?" She asked.

"Eh."

"Eh? Why?"

"I don't know, just feel... eh."

"Well if you ever want to talk about it, I'm sure everyone will be happy to help. Anyways, let's see what you got." I handed over the poem.

"Hmmm... this is good! Using the bird as a metaphor for yourself and the carcass for the struggles you've faced in life."

"Actually... that's, not what it's about."

"Oh? But I thought..." She looked over the paper once more. "Are you sure?"

I nodded. "It's just about a vulture starving out in the wild."

She face palmed, causing an audible smacking sound. "I'm so stupid!"

"I think you're just looking into it too much, not everything has a hidden meaning behind it, some things are just plain and simple, out in the open."

"I guess you're right...hey! You're giving me writing tips."

"Guess I am."

"That's my job!" She said laughing.

"You can give me a writing tip after I finish reading your poem haha."

I began reading Monika's poem, it was relatively the same as in the game, like everyone else's so far.

I guess her style hasn't changed.

I made a pop with my mouth and looked at her unsure of how to react. "I know there's a meaning in this, but uh... I can't really tell what it is."

"That's fine, just like how I thought too hard about yours, you're doing the same with mine."

"Am I?" I looked at it once more. "I still don't get it, but I like it."

She chuckled slightly again, "it's okay. I can give you my writing tip now." She cleared her throat and began to talk as if we were apart of some inspirational speaker event. "Sometimes, when you're writing a poem - or a story - your brain gets fixated on a specific point. If you try so hard to make it perfect, then you'll never make any progress. Just force yourself to get something down on the paper, and tidy it up later! Another way to think about it is this: if you keep your pen in the same spot for too long, you'll just get a big dark puddle of ink. So just move your hand, and go with the flow!" She said it word for word, just like the game.

"That's a, really good tip."

"Thanks!"

I pushed away from the table, skidding the chair against the floor. "Gonna go see Natsuki's poem next."

"Have fun." She said smiling.

I walked over to where Natsuki and I had sat earlier, she was staring out the window, tapping her fingers along the window sill.

"Nat?" I said waving the paper in her face.

"Did you just call me Nat?" She growled, smacking the paper away.

"Yes." I started, straightening out the creases in the sheet. "Not a good nickname? I could call you Suki, though that makes you sound like a completely different person, or I could just call you-"

"Just Natsuki, less you'd like to earn a fist in your stomach."

"Whatever you say. Here, it's my poem, I recall you really wanted to see it."

"Hah. Yeah I can't wait to see this comedic garbage."

My eyes closed slightly as I gave her the glare of a lifetime.

"Get your bug eyes off me or I'll gouge them out."

I rolled my eyes and grabbed her poem off the sill. I knew that she was only acting like this because of her issues, but jeez.

"Are you even trying?" She sneered.

"Excuse me?" Well I mean, I guess since I just copied something I wrote a long time ago, no. I wasn't trying. "Yes I'm trying."

"If you say so." She picked her paper up off the window sill and slapped it into my chest. "Read mine, observe the art of true poetry." Natsuki's poems aren't bad by any stretch, they're simple, yet they carry deep messages. Messages which are easily overlooked.

"Not bad." I said.

"Not bad!? What do you mean, it's the best! Look!" She snatched the paper and began pointing out the "impressive parts."

"And you see how at the end I made the rhyme fall flat?"

"Yes..." I said uninterested.

After being forced to hear her out, I returned to my seat and rested my face in my hands. I could see Yuri and Natsuki talking in the corner of the room.

Yuri looked up at Natsuki with a compassionate glare, "it's cute." She said it softly, but loud enough for me to hear.

Natsuki did not take this comment lightly though, I could see her brows furrow in anger. "Cute!? How can a poem about failure be CUTE!?"

"I-I was just trying to..."

"Trying to what? To insult me?"

"N-no... I was trying to be nice."

"Well it certainly didn't come out that way."

I watched on, my stomach felt shaky. I've always hated hearing fights, I'd dealt with it constantly when I lived back home. It made me uncomfortable to say the least.

"Hey, hey, guys." I stood up and walked over to them. "What's up with you two?"

They both looked at me, Yuri blushed and hid behind her long hair. "G-Gaje, you didn't hear any of that did you?"

"I heard a good bit."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to annoy you..." She said softly.

"No you weren't annoying m-"

"Oh you can apologize to Gaje, but not to me!?"

"I-"

"Save it, this is a good thing." She turned to me once more. "You can settle this."

"Settle what?" I asked.

"You heard, she called my poem cute. Just because I don't use stupidly large words! So I want you to settle, whose poem is better."

"Does it really matter?" I complained.

"Yes it does matter." Natsuki scowled. "Yuri's poems are over complicated and the meaning is always hidden deep beneath. You don't need to use big words, the meaning should just jump out at you!"

"So like yours." I replied.

"Exactly!"

Yuri fired back at Natsuki, "we have these 'big words' for a reason Natsuki. They're there to explain complex emotions and feelings."

"What's the point of using them if no one can understand what you're trying to say!?" Natsuki hissed.

"Okay, okay. Calm down." I said refereeing the argument. "I liked both of your poems Natsuki, an equal amount. Yours because it made me laugh and Yuri's because it made me think."

"It made you laugh!?"

Her fist flew into my shoulder FWPH.

I just stared at her and blinked, "really?"

"You asked for it."

"Anyways," I started. "You each have your own style and you should embrace it, just don't get so mad when facing criticism, it's not the end of the world," I said looking at Natsuki.

"I agree with Gaje," Monika said, surprising me. It was like the game, but if I was wearing 3D glasses.

"You two are both great writers, don't take offence to things so easily Natsuki, I'm sure Yuri meant well."

"I'm sorry Natsuki." Yuri said coyly.

"I guess I am too." Natsuki said back, arms crossed.

"You two are so cute!" Sayori blurted out.

"I am not cute!" Natsuki yelled cutely.

The rest of us shared a quick laugh.

"Okay everyone, that's all for today, same thing tomorrow, don't forget to write your poem!" Monika announced.

Sayori and I retreated back to our desks to grab our bags, I walked up behind her, "you ready to go?"

"A-huh!" She slung her bag over her shoulder and held onto the bottom of it.

"See ya guys." I said waving to the rest of the girls, Monika was the only one to wave back, Yuri and Natsuki weren't paying attention.

We stopped outside, I had to tie my shoes. As I tied them I looked up ahead at the street, other groups were making their commute home as well. "Okay, onward." I said standing back up.

"As you command!" Sayori said saluting.

The air began to pick up speed, whipping the trees surrounding us. My hair blew into my face, I kept trying to adjust it and make it stick, but my hair just kept falling again and again. "Gahh." Frustrated I held my hands over my head, keeping it from moving.

"Here." Sayori said, handing me a hair band.

"Thanks." I grabbed it and twisted it around my hair, forming a ponytail. "Much better."

"Hey Gaje, you wanna come over to my home today for dinner?"

I turned to Sayori, "uh, sure, are you making the food?"

She nodded with glee, "yeah we're gonna have shrimp and rice!"

I smiled at the prospect, but then I remembered something

"Didn't you almost burn your house down last time you made something?"

"Only one time! And besides, you were there to help..."

"Alright, well let me just drop my stuff off and let my dog inside-"

"You have a dog? When'd you get a dog!?" She asked excitedly.

"Last week?" I said trying to keep the conversation cool.

"AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME!?"

"I...uh..."

"I wanna see! What kind of dog is it, is it a he or a she?"

"It's a boxer, and it's a he."

"What are you waiting for then, he's probably really sad, let's go now!"

"I'm sure he's fine - hey, wait up!" She began to run down the sidewalk, I followed in suit.


	5. Spend Some Time

**A/N: Hello again everyone who's reading this, I apologize for the wait, I've been in kind of a rut about what to do here. Thanks everyone for their feedback, even the ones that were quite random.**

"He's so cute!" Sayori bent down to ruffle Petey's fur. He usually hated having his face touched by strangers, but he didn't seem to mind.

"What's his name?"

"It's Petey." I said looking down at them. "Hey, I'm gonna go put my stuff up in my room, then we can go back to your house. Kay?"

She turned her head, not taking her eyes off of him, "mhm!"

"You enjoy yourself." I said walking up the stairs.

I opened the door to my room; papers, pens, and clothes littered the hard-wood floor. I stepped over the mess and dropped my bag onto the bed. I changed out of my school uniform and put on my usual attire: gym shorts and a short sleeved t-shirt. I slipped the shirt over my face, "ah... much better." I picked my phone up and headed out the door. I stopped and peered back. _**Snap**. _"There, better."

I quickly descended from the stairs back to the living room, Sayori was sitting on the couch with Petey, who had fallen asleep. "Alright, let's go." I said walking over to their side. She stood up slowly, trying to not disturb the dog. I shut the door and we began walking to her house.

"This'll be just like old times!" She chirped, opening the gate to her house.

"Yeah." I responded feeling guilty. "Just like old times..."

She pulled out a key and shoved it into the lock. The door creaked open, a puff of cool air whooshed out, hitting us as we entered. "I'm gonna go change, I'll be back in a sec." She said, dropping her bag by the door. I heard her bedroom door close as I took my seat on the couch. I looked around meticulously at the room, it was similar in structure to my house. There were several paintings on the wall, though, unlike my home. One stuck out more than the others, it depicted a young girl sitting on a hill overlooking a beautiful field filled with colorful flowers. The girl seemed to be crying into a bottle she was holding. I got off the couch and inched forward trying to examine the bottle, there were words written on the side. I heard the stairs creak behind me, I turned my head, "hay Sayori... where'd you get this painting?"

"From me!" She proudly stated.

"You painted this?" I asked surprised.

"Yep!"

"Wow. I had no idea you could paint, this is amazing.

"Aw, thanks G."

"G?"

"You don't like it?"

"No, it's not that, it's just a bit out of nowhere." I explained.

She pressed her index fingers together, "well I heard you talking to Natsuki and you called her Nat, so I thought that a nickname would be fun!"

"Yeah... that didn't really work out. But, if you really want to, you can call me whatever you want. Anyways, this painting, you should totally show the others if you haven't already."

"You think so?"

I turned back to it, looking over it once more, "you should, I'm sure everyone in the club would love it." I stared back at it, but quickly broke my trance and started up once more. "Well anyways, what the plan?"

"Dinner!" She said rushing into the kitchen.

I watched from the living room as she dragged out ingredients and pots and pans. She poured rice into a giant pot and lowered a lid on it, allowing it to simmer. She had her phone out on the counter aside her, occasionally she would look at it.

"Whatcha lookin at?" I asked curiously.

"Just some instructions."

She brought the pan that she set aside over to the stove and began drizzling oil onto it, letting the liquid spread evenly throughout. A bag of shrimp soon made its way into the pan as well. They sizzled and popped with the oil.

I watched on feeling useless. "Hey, do you need any help or...?"

"Yeah sure!" She looked around her and picked up a bag full of vegetables. "Can you cut all these for me?"

"Aren't those already cut?"

"I need em smaller than that."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because you wanted to do something!"

I laughed, "yeah I did. Alright."

I lazily rolled off the couch and took position next to her. She had already laid out a knife and cutting board beside the sink and veggies. I dumped them out, slicing them into tinier diced versions. Sayori went back and forth between the rice and shrimp, slowly stirring each. Unlike Yuri, Sayori didn't perform every task with grace, she clumsily moved around, like she was still figuring out how to do things. She knew what she was doing, yet she performed as if it was the first time she had ever done this.

She reminded me so much of myself, the awkward movements, the carefree attitude, the randomness, the false mask, masquerading happiness. It's exactly why I loved her so much. I couldn't help but smiling, I was living like I had hoped, doing normal things, but with people who made it not-so normal.

"You can stop cutting those now silly."

I blinked rapidly and looked down at my hands, the vegetables looked like they had been put through a blender. "Oh, oops, my bad, I wasn't paying attention."

"Something on your mind?" She asked, head cocked to the side.

"No." I assured her. "It's nothing important."

I passed the cutting board over, she dumped it in with the shrimp. She then moved over to the rice cooker and began dumping the cooked rice into the pan, making it sizzle louder than before. The steam began mixing with smoke, causing a blinding cloud to emit from the pan. Sayori and I both began to cough from the smell of burning spices. I waved my hand in the air, pushing smoke away from us. "I'm just gonna wait in the living room."

"It should be done soon, I'll bring you a plate." She replied turning down the stove's heat.

I walked to the living room, once again sinking into the couches soft cushions. I stared at the coffee table in front of me, my mind began to race with thoughts. Thoughts of how I would approach the girls' issues. _Natsuki's issue seems like it'd be the hardest to deal with, Yuri's and Sayori's issues have about the same severity, but it would be easier helping Yuri. I guess hardest to easiest. Natsuki Sayori, then Yuri? I don't know..._

 ** _Clank!_** "Bon appétit!"

I looked up to see the plate of shrimp and rice.

"Thanks." I said watching the steam coil off the food. I grabbed a single piece of shrimp with my hand. I hurriedly chucked it into my mouth as it had begun to burn my fingers. I munched down on the juicy piece of food, making small moans of pleasure, "mmm-oh! This is delicious."

"Mhm!" She said taking her own spoonful of food into her mouth.

We sat together eating the meal, the sounds of munching and clanking silverware filled the silent room. When we finished I picked up both of the dirtied plates. I brought them over to the sink and washed them off. I brushed my hands together as I walked back to the room, "alright what now?"

Sayori shifted in her seat, "let's watch a movie!" She jumped up and sprinted up the stairs, "c'mon!"

I slowly walked up with her. I watched as the living room faded away, covered up by the wall. The door opened with ease, revealing her room. "Mr. Cow." I whispered to myself. The giant plush was at the edge of her bed. The room was as big as mine, she had a small desk next to the door, two books laid atop it; a large beige cabinet sat next to her bed; she had a calendar above her bookshelf that was torn at the bottom right. "Hey Sayori, what happened to your calendar?" I asked touching the ripped corner.

"Oh, I accidentally ripped it while I was trying to straighten it." She replied, grabbing her tv remote off the stand between her shelf and desk.

She jumped into the bed, plopping down on the edge of the mattress. I did the same, sitting beside her. The TV clicked on, Sayori began scrolling through channels. "What should we watch?" She asked.

I looked at the titles, following along as she scrolled through. "Stop. There, that one sounds good." I pointed out.

She selected the movie, it had just started. It was a lighthearted movie about a kid and his dog growing up together, all the trouble they got in, and the hardships they faced. I knew where this was headed... an hour long film getting emotionally attached, only to have that emotion torn apart. No longer light hearted.

The movie was nearing the final 20 minutes, and that's when it happened, the dog passed away of old age. I could feel pressure in my eyes, I blinked rapidly, dampening the feeling. Dogs dying have always been the one thing that lead to me crying. I'd dealt with six dogs I owned dying in my life, and it never got easier.

I felt something on my shirt, I turned, Sayori was leaning on me, she had tears falling down her cheek. "That was a good movie..." She said sniffling.

"Yeah it was." I said looking down at her flushed cheeks. I wanted to comfort her, to hold her close and take the sadness away, but I couldn't.

 _I'm_ _not him, I'm just a stranger, at least for now._

"What do you want do now?" I asked softly.

"Let's just talk..." She mumbled wiping her face.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"How was your day?" She asked.

I exhaled, "really good. I didn't do much but, the few things that I did were nice. I ran into Yuri during first period out in the courtyard, we read together on the bench in front of the fountain."

"I'm glad. Yuri usually doesn't involve others with her interests.

"Yeah I was a bit surprised, she seemed to be the shy type when I first met her. So yeah, we continued reading til the end of first block, then she left. And I- well I just went to sleep on the bench."

"Y-bwuh? You slept outside?" She lifted her head off my arm and looked at me concerningly.

"Yeah, though it felt like a minute, I slept for the entire day. I only blinked!"

"You shouldn't be skipping class Gaje! How will you get into college? You'll be a NEET your entire life!"

"Don't be so serious Sayori, I won't be a NEET for my _entire_ life. And as for college, I don't think I want to go to college."

She looked at me with a tinge of disappointment in her eyes, "Gaje, all I want is for you to be happy! And I know lazing around at home doing nothing works for you right now, but you being a NEET forever- the thought of it kills me."

"Sayori, don't say that, please. I know, you want what's best for me, and I want the same for you, but, I'm happy right now, I think. And, life's only getting better from here on out, have faith." I said, smiling convincingly.

"Are you 100% sure?" She asked, with uncertainty in her gaze.

"I'm sure trust me, everything will be okay."

"Okay..."

"Shall I continue?"

She nodded.

"So I realized that I had slept through all my classes, so I ran up to the club and you know the rest."

"What about you and Natsuki?" She asked.

"Well when I came in you all looked busy, except for her, so I tried talking to her. When I walked over it looked like she needed help or something so I offered my assistance, but she didn't seem to want it. Her manga was at the top of the shelf, she insisted she could get it, but I helped anyways. She asked about my interest in manga, which led to us reading Parfait Girls, and that's that. It was a pretty good manga to be honest."

"Oooh, I like that series! I read the set last week. The one she has is the deluxe edition."

"Is it? She must really like it then." _Or did she just a good deal?_ "And that was my day, how was yours? Anything fun happen?"

"No, not really. Mostly just normal class work. But! I did get extra food at lunch! The lunch lady and I worked out a little deal." She said looking at me with her innocent smile.

"You made a deal with the lunch lady? Which one?"

"Uh-uh can't give up privileged information, gotta keep it confidential."

"Please?"

"Mmm-mmm!"

"Fine. What else did you do today?

"Nothin!"

"Is there anything else you wanna talk about?" I asked pulling my phone out of my pocket. "Oh it's actually running kind of late I should probably get back home, I'm pretty tired, and I still need to write my poem."

Sayori lurched over my shoulder to see the time. "Oh wow, it didn't even feel that long!" She said shocked. "Yeah you should get back, can't have you staying up all night!"

I jumped off the bed, pulling the blanket with me. "I'll let myself out. Goodnight Sayori, this was fun, let's do it again sometime."

"Goodnight!"

"You want this open or shut?" I asked holding the bedroom door.

"Shut, please."

"Okay, goodnight again."

"Night! Again!"

 ** _Clink._**

I looked straight ahead and exhaled. _GAH, I thought this would be easier!_ I shook my head and continued down the stairs; then through her front door, down the sidewalk, and finally my front door. I snapped my fingers, illuminating the room. I looked through the door to the backyard, Petey was lying in the grass next to the pool, "Petey!" I yelled, grabbing his attention. "Come on." He bolted up, and began hobbling to the house. I expected him to be hyper from that nap, but surprisingly, he just jumped onto the couch and went back to sleep. "Tired huh?" I pet his head, ruffling his ears around, "I am too, night buddy."

I walked into my room, the light on my desk was still on, it cast a shadow line across the bed. I sat at the desk, my notebook and pen were in the middle of it. The pen's cold metallic lining cooled my hand as I began to write. _Poem number two..._

I dropped the pen at the side of the paper. There were several crumpled up balls of sheets on the floor beside my feet. I looked at the paper again, making sure I didn't spill ink anywhere, or smear some of the writing. "Yeah this'll do." I pushed the chair, and me, away from the table. The chair got caught on some of the hardwood floor. "God, AGH!" I pushed harder almost tipping over. I aggressively shoved the chair back under the desk and slumped into bed. I had the sudden urge to grab the pillow, I held it over my face, smothering myself, then screamed as loud as I could. "That's better." I whipped the pillow back to the left of my head and just lied there, staring at the roof.

 _What should I do? Maybe I should wait for her to tell me she likes me? Or will she even do that now? I feel like she only did that in the game because her depression was so bad she thought that her love was the reason for it._ I sat in thought for half an hour, arguing with myself. _I don't know what to do... if only Ryan were here..._

 ** _ZRRRT BZZZATTT BRBRBRBRTHRIP..._**


	6. My Friend

The light was harsh above me was harsh. A portal had appeared on the ceiling. It made static sounds as it popped and contorted. I squinted my eyes, staring into the electric blue portal. Inside the portal was the image of a familiar person, my friend Ryan. I could see him sitting at his seat, and I could hear everything clearly, like I was actually there.

"This is my last game to hit plat, let's GO!" He yelled.

I chuckled softly, "I see he's still trying..."

I watched him for a few moments, but then I had the sudden thought. _Could I...?_ I floated up to the ceiling and pushed my hand onto the portal. It felt... gooey; I pushed my hand in, phasing through the portals surface. My hand appeared on the other side. I reached at the side of his chair and I pulled on it, but he didn't seem to notice. I pulled again, and again. Eventually his chair was as close it could be to the portal, it filled up my entire view. I pulled one last time and the leg of the chair came through, then the other legs, and then the chair entirely, with Ryan in it. The portal instantly closed when he came through, I tried to reopen it, but it just fizzled out when I did. He and the chair slammed down into the floor, shattering the legs of the seat.

His head turned as he began scanning the room. He was silent, his mouth didn't even quiver. I lowered myself to the floor, gently planting the soles of my feet on the floor.

"Uh, Ryan?" I said waving my hand in his face.

He looked at me emotionless, but then he blinked twice and said, "hello. Uh, w-what's going on Gaje, what happened? Where are we?

"Uh, that's a bit of a long story... just know that, this is the world of Doki Doki and I'm pretty much its god. Look, that's not important right now, I need your advice."

"The advice can wait until you explain this." He said, waving his hand around.

"Okay, fine." I told him the general consensus, what brought me here, what I could do, what I've been doing, my plans, how everything is in this world, etc.

"Okay, I get it. I understand, that's enough." He said holding up his hand.

"So, are you good with all this, cause I can't send you back."

"Well I'm not complaining, and I've already thought out this kind of a situation, so... yeah, I'm good."

"Good... good, um as for the advice. I kinda- you know what, I'll tell you in the morning, I'm extremely tired." I said climbing into bed, wrapping a blanket around my body.

"What!? No. No! Explain it to me!"

"Can't hear you I'm sleeping."

He sucked his teeth and slapped his arms at his sides. "Ugh, fine. Where should I go?"

"There's a guest room somewhere in the hallway."

He walked away, leaning against the wall. I heard his voice, but couldn't make out what he said.

Ryan's voice soon dissipated to the point where I could no longer hear him. I smiled and nuzzled my cheek into my pillow, falling into a deep sleep as all my feelings washed away, carried by the resonance of the void. _Finally someone I can talk to..._

My eyes opened in an instant, taking on the harsh light of the sun. I laughed at myself as I turned away from the light. I hadn't appreciated the sun, its light was beautiful, it was **my** sunshine. I got out of the bed and walked to the closet, I smirked and took down some hangers. Two uniforms in hand I walked over to the guest room where I saw Ryan spread eagle on the floor. I stepped around him and kicked the side of his stomach lightly. "Hey. Wake up!"

He shuffled around and looked up at me, his eyes were baggy. "Oh, Jesus Christ, what!? It's like..." he looked around, and read the alarm clock on the bed-side table, "7 o'clock!"

"Indeed it is" I said holding up our uniforms. "Guess what though." I said mischievously.

"What Gaje? What do you want?"

"You're going to school with me."

"W-what!? I ha- you're making me go back?"

"Hell yeah." I said dropping the clothes on his stomach.

"I'm not putting these on and I'm not going back."

 ** _SNAP_**

"You're putting them on, and you're coming with me!"

"You - goddammit Gaje... f-fine." He yielded, standing up, "why are you making me go to school!?"

"Just hurry up and get downstairs, we ain't got time for your questions." I retorted as I began walking away.

"Whatever let's just go already." He said following me out.

"Ah-ah-UH. I want breakfast."

"Can't you just use your powers to make breakfast right now?"

"If I used my powers for everything, then there would be no point in living my life."

"You used your powers to put the uniform on me, you can't use it to make food?"

"There's a difference, you wouldn't have put it on if I hadn't."

He raised a finger, "that may be true, but you, ah, f it, if this takes you longer, then that's more time for me to stay out of school.

I laughed and raced down the stairs, "Petey! We have a visitor." Ryan stepped out behind me, Petey immediately started barking and running towards him. "AHHHH!" Ryan expecting to be murdered by the pup shielded his face, but Petey is a big softy, so he just jumped up and began licking his face like he was a popsicle. "H-hey ahaha stop it." I moved to the stove with four eggs in hand. I pulled out a pan and melted some butter in it on the stove. With a simple tap against the rim, the eggs cracked, and oozed out onto the pan. I made scrambled eggs for me, and two sunny side up eggs for Ryan.

"Here's a plate for you, and a plate for moi!" I said.

He gave me a dirty look, as if to say, "F u," and took the plate.

After we finished our plates I took them both up and dumped them into the sink. I opened the door to the backyard and watched Petey run out. "Be good!" I yelled closing the door. I grabbed my bag and tapped Ryan, who was sitting on the couch. "Alright let's go, I don't want to make Sayori wait.

"Wait we're walking with Sayori?" He asked confused.

"Well yeah, I told you I've been doing that."

"Yeah, but how are you gonna explain me?"

"Easy, you're an exchange student who I met the other day, and you said you had nowhere to live, so... you live with me."

He eyed me, "mmm... ok if you think that'll work, whatever."

We walked over to Sayori's house, and patiently waited outside the gate. Ryan was staring at neighborhood taking in the view of all the houses and plant life.

"This looks Japanese, are we in Japan or what...?" Ryan asked, his head cocked to the side.

"We're in a mixture of the US and Japan I think." I replied.

"Didn't you need some advice or something?" He brought up.

"Oh yeah! So, you know that I like Sayori... a lot."

"Morning Gaje!" Sayori yelled as she opened her gate.

I looked at Ryan and shrugged, "I'll tell you later I guess."

Sayori shut her gate and pranced over to us. She somehow didn't manage to catch Ryan standing next to me, until she was right beside us. "Oh! Who's this? I've never seen you around these parts."

I looked at Ryan, "take it away."

"I'm uhh, a foreign exchange student, I come from Japan."

"Where's that?" She asked.

"Uhhhh... i-it's next to China"

"Where's that?."

I couldn't stop laughing on the inside at the scene unfolding as Ryan attempted to explain to her where the two countries were.

"It's a small place, you wouldn't have heard about it... it's just some island." He said, his voice retreating with every word.

"Oh, okay!" She replied carefreely.

I jumped into the conversation, shielding Ryan from any further embarrassment, "he's also living with me for the time being, he had nowhere else to go."

"I'm proud of you Gaje, taking on more responsibilities!" Sayori said.

I mouthed a "thanks" and nodded.

"Is it okay if I walk along with you guys?" Ryan asked.

"Sure!" Sayori said, "the more the merrier."

We began walking down the street to the chorus of cars passing and leaves rustling. Ryan, hopelessly lost without his guides, awkwardly walked behind us. When we finally arrived at the school, Ryan was exhausted.

"I **_gasp_** haven't walked that far in forever." He said leaning down on the concrete walkway.

"When was the last time you ever walked that far?" I asked.

"I don't remember, since when have I ever left my house?"

"I don't know." I said gesturing to Sayori with my head.

"Ah, yes indeed." Ryan said, noticing his slip-up.

"You two talk like you'll become best friends in no time! I'm glad!" Sayori said, opening the door to the school.

"Yeah? That'd certainly be nice." I said. We walked to the end of the hall, stopping at the little intersection. I turned to Sayori, "I have to show Ryan his classes and everything... so I'll see you at the club, and if it's okay with you, I might also bring him to the club. So let Monika know if you could, please."

"New member!" She shouted, clapping.

"Well we'll see, for now, I bid you adiue." I said.

"Bye!" She said, skipping down the hall to her class.

I waited for her to disappear from sight before I grabbed Ryan's attention. "Alright, now that we're alone. What I was saying earlier, you know that I like Sayor-"

"No you _love_ Sayori." He said mockingly.

"Yes, I love her. But, here's the thing, I can't tell her that."

"Why? You're her childhood friend right?"

"Yeah and that's the issue. She thinks I'm him."

"And..?"

"I'm not!" I yelled, irritated by him not understanding.

"So what advice do you want?" Ryan asked.

"What should I do?" I asked calmly.

He scratched the back of his head, "well, if that really bothers you that much... I mean, you're spending a lot of time with her, and from what you said it seems like she doesn't think you're acting differently from when she was younger. How about this- wait what's today?"

"It's Wednesday I believe... yeah, it's Wednesday."

"Okay so the festival is... Monday?" He asked stroking his chin.

"I think so."

"Okay, then I'll give you til Monday."

"Giving me til Monday for what?"

"I'm giving you til Monday to say something to her."

"And if I don't say something?"

"Then she's mine!" He said maniacally.

I raised my hand and pressed my thumb and index finger together, combining it with a threatening stare. "I hope they'll remember you." I said in a deep voice.

"Wait no, Gaje I was kidding. I meant, if you don't say anything by then, then I'll be... disappointed."

"That's what I thought. So til Monday..."

I nodded slowly as I thought about what he said. "I think I can deal with that. Let's go get your schedule, can't have you doing nothing around here, that'd be too suspicious." I guided him to the office and I watched as he went in and received his schedule from the man at the counter. When he looked at the paper I could see all of the emotion in his face instantly drained. He walked over to me, gripping the sides of the paper hard, arms shaking.

"I-I have Spanish. Again. You can't be serious, you can't do this to me." He looked up to me with despair in his eyes.

"I didn't decide your classes, but, hey, I can change it if you want."

"Change Spanish to anything else. Please."

"Okay... you asked for it." I held my hand over the paper, divine punishment for that little joke earlier. "You get every class with Monika, and you get to sit right beside her! I know how much you'll enjoy that."

"C'mon... I can't do that, I'm not ready. I'm not complaining, but, no way... I'll make a fool of myself."

"You'll be fine, I talk to Sayori like I would anyone else."

"But..." His head lowered in resignation, he was defeated. "Okay..." He began walking down the hallway, brushing his hand against the lockers.

"Have fun!" I yelled as he left.

"Screw you Gaje."

"Love you too!" I yelled. "And now, time for me to take a nap. Actually... room 307, that's right above me actually." I walked through the hall out to the courtyard and looked up at the window above me. I snapped my fingers and cloaked myself, becoming transparent. I floated up to the window and got into a position to where I could see Ryan sitting face down at his desk. I looked at the empty seat beside him, Monika hadn't shown up yet. _Where could she be?_ I allowed myself to hear the room, as well as Ryan's innermost thoughts.

 _"Maybe Monika took the day off, Ha-ha! Take that Gaje, looks like this worlds favors me. Ah goddammit I had to open my big mouth."_

I looked towards the front, Monika stumbled through the door. She slowly walked to the back of the room. As she turned I could hear Ryan once more beginning to panic.

 _"Oh God, she's gonna sit next to me. I have a whole day of this... what am I going to do...probably kill Gaje..."_

Ryan stared at her as she took her seat. When she got comfortable in her seat she turned, meeting his gaze, causing him to look away in an instant. As I watched a devious plan popped into my mind. What If I spoke to Ryan, in his own mind?

" _Hey Ryan, It's Gaje, I'm watching you."_

 _"What? Gaje, can you not? I know you can do this stuff, but leave me alone! You're abusing your powers, I hope you're ashamed of yourself."_

 _"Oh no, not even in the slightest."_ I responded.

 _"Whatever, just don't do anything worse, please. This is already-we're already freaking def con 5 here. I have to spend a whole day sitting next to Monika- that is- oh god, I'm probably going to have to walk with her to class. This is too much, Gaje."_

 _"I'm gonna stop messaging you now, but I'll be listening. Oh by the way, I think Monika wants to say something to you."_

 _"W-what?"_ He said tensing up.

 _"Buh-bye._ " I stopped messaging him and lied on my side, watching the pilot for new favorite show.

Monika tapped on his shoulder and started to talk to him. "Hey, are you new here?" She asked.

"O-uh I - yeah I'm an exchange student, I just got here today."

"Really? That's so cool, where'd you come from?" Monika asked

" _Where'd you come from Cotton Eye Joe!?_ " Ryan thought to himself.

 _Oh Ryan, you poor fool._

"I'm from... Japan." He said as he sunk more into his chair.

"That sounds prodigious... Japan. I've never heard such a place. What part of the world is it in?"

"It's an island, off in the Pacific Ocean, but it's a small island. It's kind of secluded."

I felt my eyes getting heavy as I watched on. It wasn't as fun as thought it would be. I kept yawning as time went on and I slowly descended down as my eyes grew more tiresome. _Well... looks like I won't get to watch the rest of it._

"What are you doing Gaje?" Ryan said.

I opened my eyes at his voice, to the sight of thorns and flowers. My body was contorted, I was folded like a chair. "Um, I-I don't know. Where am I?"

"You're sleeping in a bush, or whatever. I don't know, you were just... sleeping."

"What time is it?" I asked, worming my way out of the bush.

"It's the end of the day, wait, how long have you been out here?"

"All day, I fell asleep after Monika asked you where you came from."

"I don't know whether to be relieved, or mad."

"How about neither." I said brushing the leaves off me.

"Okay well, let's go home now!"

"That's a no. We're going to the Literature club."

"Do we have to... I feel like I've already done enough damage as is."

"Why what'd you do?" I asked.

"I mean, I didn't do anything. It was just really awkward. I didn't know what to say, and she tried to help me, but I responded all like, oh, thanks. She even offered her help with the schoolwork. It wasn't bad, just... it was just awkward! She probably thinks I'm weird now."

"Yeah she probably does think you're weird, but who cares, who isn't." I replied, pushing the door open to the hall.

"Fine, let's just get this over with." He said lazily as he followed me.

I marched up the stairs and began chanting, "left, left, left-right, right left."

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm being a drill instructor." I said turning my head.

"Well, you're terrible at it, you're wasting time, pick up the pace."

"Hey, I can be whatever I wanna be. I can do whatever, I want. I could lock you in a confinement cell with Monika right now until you told her-"

"Okay! You've made your point, let's just go."

We stopped dead in our tracks just outside of the club's door. I held my hand on the door handle and looked to Ryan, "so they should be expecting you, that is if Sayori told them. You should wait here til I give you the go ahead."

"Why do I have to wait?" He questioned.

"You have to wait because... uh... you know what, never mind you're right, come on in."

"Wait. No I can wait a few minutes, I was just kidding."

I opened the door and dragged him by his arm, "c'mon!"

"Ah! Wait, no!" He resisted.

I walked into the room, still tugging on his arm, "I- **URGH** -brought another member to the- **AGH** -club, C'MON!" I finally overpowered him and got the advantage, tossing him into the room. He stood up straight like he was a stop-sign. He was completely still.

"Hello... I'm Ryan." He said slowly.

"Oh, Ryan! Welcome to the club!" Monika said coming over to us. "When Sayori told us of a new member, I wasn't expecting you."

"Oh, hey Monika, I didn't know you were in this club."

"Yep I'm the club president!"

"That's really - that's awesome."

"Mhm! It's been a lot of fun so far."

The other girls: Yuri, Natsuki, and Sayori, joined Monika at the doorway as well to see Ryan's entrance.

"Gaje! Other member! You're here!" Sayori blurted out joining us.

 _I didn't tell her his name earlier, did I?_

"Yes we are indeed." I replied. "Thanks for letting Monika know we were coming.

She smiled and nodded.

I pushed Ryan forward a tad more, "anyways everybody, this is Ryan, he would like to join the club, if you'll all accept him. Is it okay with you guys?"

"Sure, I'm fine with it." Monika answered. "girls? How about you?"

"I guess he can stay, though it's not like we need any more boys here." Natsuki groaned.

"I'm fine with more members!" Sayori said.

"If it pleases everyone else, I'm content." Yuri added.

"Then it's settled, Ryan shall become our newest member!" Monika declared. Monika leaned forward to assure Ryan heard her, "by the way Ryan you should know, everyday we all write poems and share. So, if you can, tomorrow, write a poem to share."

"Oh... I'm, uh, not that good at poems." Ryan replied, looking down.

"Oh quit being modest, you're fantastic at writing poems, I've seen that notebook you have, it's filled with them." I said as I grabbed his shoulder and shook him around.

I could hear Ryan mumble under his breath, "you son of a..." then he spoke up, "that's not mine, that was just a book I bought before I moved in with you."

"Oh is that right? It had your name on it and everything." I said.

 _"It's a booklet full of poems for you to use, just go along with it."_ I said through his mind."

"Oh wait! _Thaaat_ book, okay yeah sorry I thought you were talking about the one on the coffee table.

"Did you say you moved in with him?" Natsuki butted in, seemingly ticked off.

"Yeah, he's staying with me." I said. "He just moved here from Japan, so he had no place to go."

"How dependable." Yuri said softly, catching a dirty look from Natsuki.

"So you're okay with writing a poem tomorrow Ryan?" Monika inquired.

"I am." He replied.

"That's great, I look forward to it! For now, the rest of us are going to be sharing in about... 25 minutes. So, be ready you guys."

Ryan and I both took a seat at the front row of the class, he looked visibly embarrassed.

"Ryan are you alright?"

"What? Y-yeah."

I tapped my fingers along the desk, "so... what's your plan with Monika?"

"I, don't have one."

"You made one for me."

"Yeah, but this is me, not you."

"Do you want me to make up a plan?" I asked, giving him a devilish grin.

"No, knowing you, it'd just be something like, 'just tell her,' or something."

"Suit yourself." I said pushing myself up out of the desk. "I'm gonna go talk to one of the others, maybe I'll visit Monika first though."

"You better not do what I think you're going to do."

I turned around to him and held my arms out wide, "who knows, anything could happen, it's not like I have the powers of a god or anything."

Before he could respond I turned to walk to the desk. "Hey Monika, uh Ryan said that he had some questions for you, and I sorta promised Natsuki we'd read the rest of Parfait Girls, so could you keep him company?"

"Oh yeah, sure!" She said standing up.

"Great, thanks."

I saw him eyeing me as she walked towards him. I waved at him and winked. I mouthed a, "you're welcome," and turned away. While thinking of a plan to bring up Natsuki's issue, a thought hit me like a truck, I hadn't yet written a poem. But it wasn't like this would be an issue, but I preferred thinking out the poem, seeing it written down. _Looks like I'm going to have to sacrifice that little joy_. I didn't snap my fingers this time, not like I really had to ever. I felt a piece of paper poking my leg through my pants pocket. I took it out and stared at it. "Not my best work, but it'll have to do." I shoved the paper back in and began walking towards the closet.


	7. Fishing for an Issue

I entered the closet and leaned against the wall, Natsuki was sifting through the shelves. I leaned over and tapped her on the shoulder, "yo."

"Good. Didn't think you'd show." She said, turning to me.

"Alas I have indeed shown up."

"Why are you talking like that?"

"I don't know, just felt like it." I said shrugging.

"You're weird."

"Aren't we all?"

She rolled her eyes and turned back to the shelf. She began sporadically pushing aside books and binders. "RRRGHHH. Where is it!?" She grunted.

"You looking for your manga?" I asked.

"Yes..." she sighed, still rifling through the shelf.

She poked her head outside the closet, "Monika! Did you move my manga again!?"

I looked over at Monika, she was still sitting next to Ryan, though Ryan looked a little worse for wear.

"Yes, they're supposed to be at the top, that's what the teacher said, remember?" Monika answered.

"Hmmph!" Natsuki crossed her arms and retreated back into the closet. She pulled out the step ladder and climbed to the top. She began patting her hand around the top shelf, but she couldn't see all of it.

"Ahem," I coughed, "let me grab it Natsuki, and yes, I'm offering my help because I think you're short."

She scowled at me, but reluctantly stepped down, allowing us to switch places. I could hear her shoe tapping against the floor impatiently as I got to the top of the ladder. I pushed all the textbooks and binders out of the way, yet still, I could not manage to find the manga.

 _Ah there it is_.

The manga was in the very back of everything, all the way hidden in the corner. I grabbed it and climbed back down.

"Here you are." I said handing it over.

"Thanks." She hastily replied. "C'mon, let's finish this already."

We both stepped out of the closet and took our seats under the window sill. I shuffled around, adjusting my collar and my vest so I wasn't sitting on it. I leaned back onto the wall and watched as Natsuki carefully took out the first volume of Parfait Girls from the set. She set aside the box and placed the manga on her knees, allowing us both to see everything clearly.

"So what page were we even on?" I asked.

"Page 43, right in the middle of the big bake-off." She said opening the book to the page.

As we read on together, I couldn't help but notice Natsuki wasn't too keen on it. Her eyes were slightly closed like she was tired. I lowered my head to her eye level, "hey, Natsuki... are you alright? You seem kind of off."

She didn't take her eyes off the book, "I'm fine."

"Mmm, if you say so."

She sighed, "it's nothing alright?"

"When does nothing, ever mean nothing."

"Gaje, lay off." She coldly replied.

"See, now I want to know even more, what's up?"

She growled and closed the book, "look! I'm fine! Why do you care!?"

"Because we're friends."

Her face relaxed, the anger seemingly washing away. "I... I can't get into it, I'm sorry."

I stopped pressing her, there was no way she would tell me right now. "Okay, I'll lay off... sorry."

She looked away with what I could only imagine was sadness or regret. "It's not your fault... it's just been a hard couple of days."

I've dealt with people going through hard times all my life, but no one knows what to say in these situations... everyone's different.

"Look, Natsuki, I just want you to know, no matter what is going on, you can rely on me. Nothing you say can deter me from being your friend, I-"

"Time to share poems everyone!"

 _Oh. My. Fucking. God. MONIKA WHY?!_

Natsuki and I both stood up, I looked at her emotionlessly. I tried to recuperate what I said, paraphrasing what I said before. "Look, no matter what you're going through, you can tell me."

She shook off what I said, "you should go share with the others. Shouldn't keep them waiting."

I nodded disheartenedly and walked away. I took out my poem from my pocket and unfolded it; I looked around the room, Ryan was passed out, Monika and Sayori were talking, and Yuri was patiently waiting sitting at her desk observing the others.

"H-hey Yuri." I sighed.

"Hey... are you alright?" She asked.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, no, it's something dumb. Anyways, here." I held out my poem and she lightly grabbed it.

She skimmed through the poem, I could see her pupils dilate and contract as she moved from line to line.

"Terrible right?" I said, mocking myself.

"No!" She blurted out, sporting a shocked expression. Her face relaxed, "sorry, that was a bit too loud..."

"I don't think anyone else heard you, so I think it's fine."

She lowered her head, reading over the writing once more. "It's not a bad poem Gaje."

"Yuri, I wrote this in like a second, there's not even a meaning behind it."

"You say that, yet your emotions can still be felt in it." She rebutted, handing me the paper back.

I took it back and looked over it once more. _I feel like she's just saying that to be nice._

I looked back at Yuri, she was twirling her hair.

"um, Yuri?"

"Y-yes!?" She exclaimed.

"Your poem?" I said pointing to her desk.

"O-oh! Yes, here."

I smiled and took the paper from her grip, it was the poem about her self harm. I read through the entire thing and turned back to her. "Yuri, I need to talk to you, in private. If it's okay with you."

"H-huh?"

"Just follow me outside real quick please." I said as I walked past her.

She stood up quickly, "wait, Gaje."

"It'll be quick I promise." I promptly replied.

I held the door open and Yuri walked out, I could feel the piercing stairs from Monika and Sayori as I followed Yuri out the doors. _Please don't overthink this._ I shut the door, Yuri and I walked further down the hall to the water fountain.

"W-what's this all about Ga-"

"I know you cut yourself Yuri."

Her body tensed up, her skin began glistening from sweat permeating across her forehead. "W-what? I-I don't-"

"Yuri, look, I know we aren't close friends. But I'm worried about you... this kind of thing isn't healthy."

Her hands were shaking at the sides of her body. "H-how did you find out?" She asked, her voice shaking.

 _Okay. I didn't think this through. Saying I figured it out through the poem is kind of far-fetched._

"How I found out isn't really the issue here Yuri. Just, please, tell me. Why do you do it?"

She seemed reluctant to say anything, her lips trembled whenever she wanted to open her mouth.

"Yuri I won't judge you, look I'll tell you something about me first if you want." I said.

She nodded quickly in response.

I had nothing in particular I could tell her, no dirty secrets, no weird habits, nothing. The only thing I could possibly imagine would be telling her that I'm a god. She'd likely think I was joking and feel hurt. My only real option was...

"I love Sayori." The words came out of my mouth with zero hesitation. I instantly looked away to avoid her looks.

"Y-you like… Sayori?"

"Yes." I replied instantly.

"Well I suppose that only makes sense, you've been friends for most of your life."

I looked back at her, my face felt hot and my chest was stinging. "Okay, your turn now. Why do you cut yourself?"

"Originally, I did it because the feeling of the blade gliding through my skin was like an explosion of fervid wonders. But, that feeling eventually went away, so I cut more and more, and the blood became the center of my attention. When I saw it pouring out it just gave me a sense of euphoria, my mind would go blank and I could finally relax."

"That um. I don't really know how to respond to that…"

 _I didn't expect her to actually answer that lengthily._

"I'm sorry if this makes you hate me now, b-but please don't tell the others."

"No, Yuri I don't hate you. I consider you my friend, now and forever. I'll keep your secret, I won't tell anyone else."

"Are you certain?"

"Uh… yes?" I laughably replied.

"Okay... I-I trust you."

I took out a sheet of paper from my pocket, "I want you to take this. If you ever get the urge to cut, please, please, call me. Or text."

She grabbed the small slip and stared down at it, "o-okay, I will."

"Alright, well she should probably go back in, who knows what they're thinking."

Her eyes widened, "ah! Y-yes you're right we should."

I walked to the door and held it open, "after you."

We both walked into the room. Monika was sitting at the teacher's desk reclined in the teacher's chair, with her legs across the desk, Ryan was still dead asleep, and Sayori was talking with Natsuki by the closet. I waved goodbye to Yuri and walked over to Monika.

"Welcome back Gaje, what were you two doing outside?" She asked in an intrigued tone.

"Talking."

"About..?"

"I am not at liberty to say."

"I see, I see, it's hush, hush and all." She took her legs off the desk and pushed the chair in, "well, let's see your poem for today."

She held her hand out expectantly. I handed her the folded piece of paper and watched on as she skimmed through it.

"This one's nothing like yesterdays, did you decide to try another style?"

"I guess so, I don't really stick to a style, it's random, like me."

"Interesting… well it's okay, but your first was better." She said handing it back.

"Yeah... let's see yours then."

She slid her paper across the desk, I picked it up and I instantly noticed, something about her poem felt… off. It was called _Hate Me_... Talk about setting a mood. I read through it expectant of the same thing, yet it stuck true to its title.

 _Does Monika have an issue as well now?_ _I'm probably overthinking it again._

I got near the ending of the poem, which had also changed; no longer was it 'load me,' it had become 'loathe me.'

I passed the poem back, "hmm, impressive. This one was better than yesterday's."

She looked at me with an 'I told you so,' attitude and took the paper up. Her head turned, looking behind me. "Looks like someone's waiting for you, best hurry."

I turned around Sayori was sitting in the front row, waving violently.

"It looks like it." I mumbled.

I walked away from the desk and over by Sayori. She patted the seat next to her, "sit,sit,sit!"

I did as she excitedly requested. She wasted no time, slapping her poem down onto the desk in front of me. "Here, read it!"

I held my hands up, "okay, calm down jeez." I picked up the paper, it was her self-proclaimed 'best poem ever.' She stared me down, a twinkle in her eyes. I handed it back after shortly finishing.

"So!?" She squeed.

"It's great? I really liked the imagery. It's your best one so far."

"Of course, I told you I'd make the bestest poem ever!"

"That you did. Mine's nowhere as good..." I responded.

"I'm sure yours is great, c'mon hand it over!"

I passed it to her and rested my hand on my chin, holding my head up. She read the poem with zeal, never taking her eyes off of it. When she finished reading she placed the paper on my head. I looked up at it waiting for gravity to take its course and kick it off.

"What were you talking about Gaje, it was great!"

"I'll take your word for it. I wrote it in like a second."

"Well that makes it even more better!" She said smiling. "Oooh! So what were you doing with Yuri?"

"Ah… I can't really tell you Sayori, I'm sorry."

She scrunched her mouth and crinkled her nose, "why not!?"

"Because I swore to Yuri I wouldn't tell anyone." I said clasping my hands together.

She quirkily turned away from me, "fine."

"You're not really mad are you?"

A small giggle betrayed her, she turned back, "no…"

"Okay, well I have to share with Natsuki now, I don't think there's much time left." I said my goodbye and got up from the desk. I looked at the closet ahead of me, Natsuki was curled up, lying in the bottom shelf's cubbyhole. I walked by her side then knelt down to her level.

"Natsuki." I placed my hand on her shoulder and began shaking her. "Hey, wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake u-"

"W-what!?" She growled pushing my arm away.

"Poem." I responded holding my paper up to her face.

She reached out and took it. She looked at it for second, and then handed it back. "Done. It's great."

"You didn't even read it though."

"So!?"

I rolled my eyes, "fine, give me yours."

She pointed at the wood above her head, "it's on top of the shelf."

I stood up and went to grab the paper.

"Hurry up!"

I sighed, "hold on, jeez." I knelt back down and began scanning the paper, "there I'm done. Now, let us get back to what we were talking about earlier."

"I said I was fine, remember!?"

Her anger was beginning to rub off on me. I could feel a flame lighting in my chest. "Yes. You did, but-"

"Then I'm fine." She said, rolling onto her side to continue her sleep.

I started slowly gritting my teeth. _Just leave before you say something you regret._ I turned around and walked out of the closet. Yuri was back to reading her book, Ryan was face down at his seat, drooling on the desk. Sayori was happily bobbing her head side to side as she was coloring some sheet of paper. I looked to Monika and gave her a thumbs up to indicate me finishing.

She got up out of her seat and walked to the podium at the front of the class. "Alright everyone! We're done for the day, so you can pack up and leave. Or you can stay for a while, and help me clean up."

I grabbed my stuff from the side of my desk, as I did I shot Yuri a concerned glare. I held my hand up to my ear in a phone shape, and mouthed a "call me." She nodded and began to pack her stuff up as well.

Ryan stood up and yawned loudly, he seemed to still be out of it. He slung his bag's strap over his shoulder and began walking out the door. He didn't say anything, he just turned into the hallway and closed the door.

"Where's Ryan off to? Does he know how to get back?"

"No he does not, so... we should probably catch up to him."

We both walked to the door. "Bye everyone." I said.

"Bye girls!" Sayori said.

Ryan was already walking down the stairs when we entered the hall. We both steadily increased our pace to keep up with him. I tried to call out to him, but he just kept walking, grinding against the wall the entire way. The school was quiet, most of the other clubs ended about 30 minutes ago. Sayori's and my shoes filled the halls with slapping sounds as we moved to the front doors. Ryan pushed open the front doors, he still hadn't noticed we were behind him, that or he just didn't seem to care. I sped up to hold it open for Sayori.

"Ryan!" I yelled out.

He stopped in place, "whaaaaaat?"

I walked up behind him, "wait for us, you're gonna get lost on the way back."

His head drooped down, he covered his face with his hands. "Gaje, do you think I can actually do this?"

"Uh... do what exactly?"

"Talk to Monika, you know..."

My eyes widened as I shot a quick glance at Sayori. "Ixnay on the talkingxay!" I whispered to him.

"I mean I can't just tell her I like her, she already thinks I'm weird..." He pulled his hands away and looked back up towards Sayori and me. He blinked once, twice, then... "oh. Oh! S-Sayori, you didn't hear what I said right?"

I covered my face, "I know that you need sleep, but, this bad?"

Sayori was practically about to explode, her mouth was agape. She ran up to Ryan, bringing him into an embrace. "Oh my goodness! This is great, Monika really needs a boyfriend." She let him go, Ryan's face exploded, his cheeks covered in red.

"Uh… thanks Sayori, I really needed the motivation." Ryan softly said.

"No problem!" She replied.

"Well if you two are quite done with your show of public affection, I'd like to go home now." I interrupted.

"Someone's mad he didn't get a hug!" Sayori cooed.

Sayori slowly walked towards me, arms wide open.

"No. I do not want a hug." I walked backwards, staying the same distance apart.

"C'mon… you do too!"

"No I don't."

"Meanie…"

Ryan decided to join in, furthering my embarrassment. "Yes you dooooo. You want a hug don't youuuuu." He said in a Yoda voice.

"Ryan, shut your face."

"I'm just doing the best I can…" He replied in sad tone.

"Your best is terrible."

"Hug barrage!"

Sayori jumped me while I was scolding Ryan.

"H-hay!" I hollered, as Sayori dragged me to the ground.


	8. A Normal Night

**Short Author's Note: thanks everyone for all the feedback so far, I'm glad most of you seem to be enjoying it. I'm trying to work on writing more consistently, but some days I'm just bleh. Anywho, thanks and back to the story!**

* * *

Sayori, Ryan, and I all slowed our paces as we neared Sayori's home.

"Well, I'll see you guys tomorrow!" Sayori said as she walked into her yard. She poked her head out of the gate, "Oh, and be prepared, Monika and I have something very special planned!"

"Alright, we'll see ya tomorrow." I said

"Bye Sayori." Ryan said.

He looked over at me with a curious expression, "do you know what's going on tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow's Thursday right? Hmm... oh, yeah it's when we all share poems in... front of... everyone." I trailed off as my stomach groaned in pain.

 _I forgot about that..._

I've had pretty bad stage fright for most of my life, and it gets even worse in front of people I know. I really don't want to do this, but I've never backed out of a public performance before. So, why start now?

"I wonder, you think I'll have to do it as well?" Ryan asked.

I shook my head, "I don't know, but we'll find out later. Let's just go home."

We walked up to the house, Ryan held open the gate for me, letting me in. I began rifling through my pockets for my keys. I opened the door and we both walked into the cool room. Ryan instantly crashed onto the couch, laying his legs just over the armrest. I walked towards the backdoor, opening it for Petey.

"Petey!? Helloooooooooooooooo?"

I stepped out the door and looked around, but saw nothing. I could hear a faint rustling in the bushes, I walked over to the bush and peered inside of it.

"There you are, what the fuck are you doing?" I asked playfully.

He looked up at me whilst I was talking and instantly bolted, totally ruining the bush.

"Petey! C'mon man. You fucked up the damn roses."

He darted into the house and I shortly followed behind him. I returned to the living room to see him curled up into a ball next to Ryan on the couch.

I looked at Ryan, who's eyes were sealed shut. "Are you gonna sleep there?" I asked, taking a seat on the recliner.

"Nah," he replied, "I'm just resting."

"Alright… whatever you say."

I began to rest my eyes as well, giving me the opportunity to reflect over today's events. I may not have gotten Natsuki's issue out in the open, but at least I managed to pull Yuri's out.

"Ahhh…" Ryan yawned, "I need to take a shower."

I kept my eyes closed, increasing my hearing sevenfold.I could hear Ryan's feet rubbing against the carpet as he walked over to the stairwell.

"Oh yeah, about the shower," I started. "It has a very specific setting if you want the water to be just the right temperature. Or else, it'll just be extremely hot or cold.

I heard his footsteps come to a halt, "what the hell do you mean?"

"It's exactly as I said, it needs to be at a specific angle. Any deviation and you'll regret it."

"Why though?" Ryan asked.

"Because I'm too lazy to fix it."

"Bu-agh, whatever." He said as he walked up the stairs.

A few moments later I could hear the familiar sound of the shower dials squeaking, bringing about the water pouring down and cascading against the porcelain tub. This was of course followed by a rather loud shriek of pain from Ryan, which I could not help but laugh at. The dials once again were adjusted, the squeaking carried on for a while. But, then it stopped, though there was no scream this time.

20 minutes later the shower cried out again, cutting the water off. I opened my eyes and watched the stairs, awaiting Ryan's return. I really wanted to tell him about what happened today. I heard the smack of feet against wood growing louder and louder, I focused on the very top of the stairs and saw Ryan's legs. He began walking down... in nothing but a towel.

As he walked to my side I jokingly asked, "you a nudist now?"

"I have no clothes, I came to ask you if you had some I could borrow." He said, gripping the towel by its ends.

"I can just make you some clothes if you'd like."

I snapped my fingers, a fresh selection of clothing lay out upon the coffee table.

"There's atleast a couple weeks worth of clothing." I said gesturing to the table.

"Thanks." Ryan said, grabbing up the clothes and returning to his room.

He soon came back down fully clothed and took a seat beside Petey on the couch. I wasn't sure how to start the conversation. I ended up just blurting out, "so I got Yuri to tell me she cuts herself."

"Bravo Gaje." He replied.

"Hold your applause, it's not solved, but I am working on it."

I pulled out my phone and stared at the screen, "Yuri has my number now, I told her to call or text if she ever felt the need to cut."

"Oh I see, making moves on Yuri _and_ Sayori? You sly dog."

"No." I said bluntly.

"I'm just kidding Gaje." Ryan responded holding his hands up. "How'd you even get her to tell you?"

"I confronted her about it during our exchange of poems. I told her to come outside because I wanted it to be a private conversation. I said I knew she cut herself and I wanted to know why. In doing so, I offered to share something personal about me if she wanted first, y'know, to make her feel more comfortable. But that backfired on me because I have nothing personal to share."

"Well you have one thing." Ryan said.

"Yes, and that was the one thing I told her."

"Wow, I'm actually impressed, I didn't think you'd tell anyone. You're one step closer to telling Sayori."

"Telling anybody else is 1000 times easier, telling her directly is impossible for me." I adjusted the recliner and shifted around, "anywho, I told her that, and she wasn't really all that shocked. So in return for my secret she told me about why she cuts herself. After hearing her reason I gave her my number and you know the rest."

"How do you know she'll even call?" Ryan questioned.

"I don't, you just gotta have trust Ryan!" I said triumphantly.

"Did anything else happen?"

"Not really, I made some progress with Natsuki, but she still hasn't told me about her father so."

"Well, it's progress nevertheless. That's all that matters." He replied, standing up.

He walked into the kitchen, straight for the fridge and opened it up. "Do you have any drinks?" He asked looking at me.

"No, but what do you want?"

"Hook me up with some root beer." He said.

"Behind you." I pointed out.

"Thanks."

He picked up the small bottle and walked back into the living room. He untwisted the cap of the bottle and took his seat, chugging down the foamy beverage. He gave a sigh of relief and wiped his mouth with his arm.

"So, are you ready for tomorrow?" He asked.

"No, I'm not, and I don't have any poem ideas at the moment so…"

"You could always use the MC method." He said, taking another swig of his drink.

"The MC method?"

"You write 20 words out and see which of the girls like them the most."

"Oh that stupid shit, haha."

We both shared a light-hearted laugh.

"So, you've got your own problems, and I've got mine." Ryan concluded.

"Like what?" I asked

He finished off his soda with a belch, "firstly… I'd like to try to write a poem of my own, secondly I want to clean up my act at school."

"What are you cleaning up exactly?"

"How I act in general around Monika, and staying awake."

"I can't see you not ever falling asleep at school, at least once."

"Look, there's no league here, we don't have internet, and all the anime here sucks."

"You saw like one episode of a show at 4 a.m." I rebutted.

"It was garbage!"

"You do know that I can create everything you listed right? League, anime, and also, there is internet in this world, we just don't have wi-fi."

"As tempting as it is, I shall not let the devil tempt me."

"Suit yourself." I said shrugging.

We were both quiet, the sound of the a/c and fridge humming and whirring filled the air.

"Well," Ryan started, "I'm gonna start my poem now."

He stood up and walked over to the front door, picking up his bag. He dragged it over with him to the couch and began taking out supplies that I had made for him. He plopped a notebook and a blue ballpoint pen onto the table. He lifted the pen and opened the notebook and began writing.

"I should probably get to writing mine as well." I said popping my journal into my lap.

Silence loomed over the room as we both wrote. Five minutes passed, then 10, then 20, then 40. I looked over at the coffee table in front of Ryan, the carpet around it was covered in wadded up balls of paper. I felt for him, it was hard enough expressing feelings in writing, but this was the first time he ever had tried to write a poem. I returned my gaze to my poem, it was a poem I wrote about Natsuki called Pink Hair, Pink Lies.

I pondered over whether or not I should use it tomorrow, it was about Natsuki's abuse at home. I decided not to use it as it wouldn't make sense for me to just know all of a sudden, even though that's what I did with Yuri. Natsuki's secret is more well-kept and hidden than Yuri's.

"Done… I guess." Ryan said softly. He held the notebook up to his eye level, "this is bad…"

"Lemme see." I said holding my hands out.

He reluctantly handed over the notebook, allowing me to read it through. I cleared my throat and began to read it quietly to myself.

"Stuck in an endless void, no escape in sight. A single gem, an emerald, illuminates my path. It gives me the will to move with all my might. I get up and walk the lightened trail. The emerald glows brighter, it envelops me, making me frail. I look up to see an angelic figure, the most beautiful being. Eloquent and charming, she made my heart skip a beat. She took my hand and raised me to my feet, guiding me forward towards a new light. Together."

I nodded slowly and looked to Ryan, he looked convinced that it was truly an awful poem.

"It's pretty good, especially for your first time." I said encouragingly.

"Thanks…" He groaned as he took the book back. "Did you finish yours?"

"Yeah, but I can't use this one, so I'm gonna write a different one."

"No need to say more, I know what you wrote about." He said with a perplexing grin.

I rolled my eyes and leaned back into my chair. Ryan shoved his journal into his bag and walked towards the stairs, "well, I'm going to sleep now, night."

"Night." I said.

I dived back into my writing, spending another hour on it. When I finally had finished a poem I felt confident sharing I felt my eyes struggling to hold the gates. I looked over at Petey, he was still comfortably resting. "You've got the right idea." I said as I pushed the chair back more and more. I pulled a blanket off the couch and covered myself, closing my eyes and sinking into the chair...

I felt…wet, like I was on one of those raft rides at an amusement park. I opened my eyes, a familiar setting filled my vision. This was the place I had met my spirit. I could see the giant wall far ahead of me, I walked forward to it, slapping against the solid liquid floor. I reached the giant wall like before and reached out to it, pressing my hand on it.

"Welcome back Gaje."

I turned 180 degrees, seeing the water silhouette I had met before.

"Hello. Again."

"Greetings."

I looked around awkwardly and clapped my hands, "so… what's uh… what's going on."

"It's actually not a particularily good reason. But it can be solved with relative ease."

"What's the issue?"

"Your friend Ryan."

"Oh, how'd you know about that?"

"Anything you see, I see. Anything you feel, I feel."

"Well… that's a bit creepy."

"How so? We're two of the same."

"I don't know. Whatever, what's the issue here?"

"The issue is that your friend Ryan, can not be here without his own consent. And Ryan also must communicate with both us and his own spirit."

"And how exactly would we he even do that."

My spirit said nothing in return, the water beneath me split in half, just like the Red Sea. It was a bottomless pit of black abyss. I looked down into it, a tiny blip of white dotted the ground. It grew larger and larger.

"You might want to move." My spirit said.

He and I took a few paces back as the giant white object emerged from the ground, it was a cloud. It dispersed in the air surrounding us, conforming into a silhouette of its own.

"Hello again Ryan." My spirit said.

"Hello." The silhouette replied.

"Who or what the hell is that?" I asked.

"That, is Ryan's spirit." He responded.

"Oh."

"Indeed, I am Ryan's spirit."

"How do you guys even know each other?" I asked.

"When you make a friend in the world, your spirits are automatically acquainted." My spirit answered.

"Hmm. Cool."

"And now allow me to summon Ryan here." Ryan's spirit said, forming a stationary tornado.

The tornado grew stronger, water droplets surrounded the air, turning it into a waterspout. It eventually calmed down, the dark and gloomy air dissipated, leaving behind a body. The body of Ryan.

He stood up, and rubbed his eyes as he looked

at all of us. "Can't a man sleep without any crazy things happening."

"Well he surely is your spitting image." My spirit said to Ryan's.

"That he is." Ryan's spirit replied.

"Okay let's get this over with. I have stuff to do." I said.

"Anyone care to explain what's goin on?" Ryan interjected. "Or is this some dream?"

"No this isn't a dream." I responded.

"Then what's going on? I'm confused."

"Why don't we explain it." Our spirits said.

The two spirits changed the area around us to a colosseum. They began to speak in unison, like some sort of clichè character from hell.

"For thousands of millenia, spirits and their hosts have interacted with one another. There are countless dimensions, universes, galaxies, created in the name of a spirit's host, it is our one duty to assure their happiness and sanity, as it also affects us. Gaje. You unknowingly broke one of the main rules we spirits were given, so your punishment will not be harsh, but it will be painful."

"Just tell me already." I said impatiently.

A small blade floated down from above, carried by a cloud. I grabbed it out of the air and looked at the knife. It was golden, fitted with gems of all sorts, the handle was as smooth as the top of a fresh thing of peanut butter. I looked back up at the spirits, "what do I do with this exactly?"

"You, and Ryan must perform a ritual that is rarely brought about, a ritual of blood and bonding."

"It's not what I think it is… is it?" I asked, afraid of the answer.

"Indeed it is." My spirit answered.

"Great."

I looked at Ryan, he seemed confused, he didn't understand.

"What?" He said with a perplexed look.

"Have you heard of a blood oathe?" I asked.

"I've heard of it, I just don't know what it is."

"I'm going to take this knife, _sigh,_ and cut open my hand. You are going to do the same. We are going to shake hands, and our blood is going to mix."

"That does not seem safe. Sharing blood with other people is not a good idea at all."

"This will not affect your health in any way." Ryan's spirit intervened.

"See it's fine." I said, nervously chuckling.

"Whatever, let's just get this over with." Ryan said.

I swallowed and looked at the blade in hand, _I could reopen the scar on my left hand, it'd prob be easier to cut._

I held the knife above my hand, like I was about to dice up vegetables. "Well, now or never." I lowered the tip of the blade to the top of my healed scar and quickly slid it down my hand to my palm. I felt nothing, then a wave of intense sharp pain sent a shock through my body. I dropped the knife out of instinct and gripped my hand, trying to apply pressure, which only resulted in more blood oozing out.

The knife on the ground began floating over to Ryan on a mini wave. When it reached his feet the blade lifted off the ground and levitated just before him.

"Complete the ritual Ryan." My spirit said.

Ryan grabbed the knife, looked towards me as I was writhing in pain. I tried to smile through, feigning strength that I did not have. "Didn't feel a thing." I said clenching my teeth.

He lowered the blade to his left hand, right to the middle of it. A quick slice, raising the drawbridge, allowing a large boat of blood to flow through. I could see droplets drip off of his hand, falling into the water, tainting it.

"Finish the ritual." Both spirits echoed.

I walked over, still applying pressure on my hand. I reached out my hand to Ryan, "here, hurry up."

"Hopefully you don't have aids." He replied.

"Shut the fuck up Ryan. Just do the handshake." I said irritated.

He reached his hand out as well. Our hands connected, it stung even worse than before, the sharp pain started to burn as well. It felt like my hand had spontaneously combusted. I bit down, grinding my teeth together, numbing the pain, just barely.

"Are we done yet?" I painfully asked.

"Yes. You may both let go." My spirit said.

Ryan's hand as well as mine were crimson in color, as red as a cherry. My arms were shaking from the blood loss, I became light headed, it was as if one push could've made me fall over.

Water shot from the ground, surrounding the two of us. It seemed to concentrate on our hands, swarming the wound. I tried to yell, but the water had muffled all the sound around us. I watched on in disgust as the water slowly seamed my wound back together. Small strands of flesh intertwined like someone was sewing it up with a needle. It was like nothing had happened to us at all, my hand was back to normal.

The water stopped around me stopped all movement no longer flowing. It suddenly dropped, returning to the ground beneath us.

I huffed and wiped sweat from my forehead and looked directly at my spirit. "A-are we fucking done? Jesus fucking Christ man, that was some of the most stupidest fucking bullshit I've ever had to experience in my fucking life. Cutting my fucking hand open because some retarded rule that you decided to never fucking mention to me. You're a goddamn cunt you know that? Fuck you."

The spirits ignored my outburst. "We are done, but before we go, Ryan must give his consent." Ryan's spirit said.

"Why the fuck does he need to consent _AFTER_ the fucking fact?" I spat.

"Honestly we forgot." My spirit said.

"Unfucking believable." I scoffed.

"So, Ryan?" His spirit questioned.

"Well since I already did it, do you even need to ask? If I didn't want to, I wouldn't have done this." He said holding his hand up.

"Fair enough." His spirit responded.

"Do I get powers now?"

"No, you should've asked before the ceremony."

"But I didn't know!" Ryan groaned.

"Goodbye again Gaje." My spirit said.

I was still ticked off from the events. I raised my middle finger up and started to berate my spirit. "What kind of sudden bul-"

I wasn't able to finish my sentence though. We were both overcome with a wave of water. My vision went blank, and all sound had stopped.


	9. Ryan's Nerves

I jerked up. I looked around me, I was in my living room. I swallowed spit and wiped my face, my mouth was dry and my eyes were burning. I looked over at the couch, Petey was still sleeping soundly. He made an occasional whimper and huff, he would kick and wiggle. Must've been having a dream. I cast off the blanket covering me and jumped out of the chair. I stumbled over to the stairway, using the railing to keep me from falling down. I looked at Ryan's door, I could see the room was dark. I walked down the hall and gently opened it, I looked towards the bed to see Ryan sat up, staring down at the comforter.

"Uhh… Ryan? You good?" I asked, concerned for his mentality.

"So that really happened huh? Now I got a cool scar on my hand..." He muttered looking deeply into his palm.

I looked down at my hand, there was no remnant of the blood pact. _I think he's lost it..._ "Ryan, um I'm pretty sure you don't have a scar. I don't have one."

"Oh… maybe I'm just tired. W-what time is it anyways?"

"It's 7 o'clock."

He groaned and rolled over, retreating into the depths of the blanket.

"I don't want to go today... I'm sick." He said, his voice muffled.

"Ryan get the fuck up man."

"But you don't even do anything at school... why does it matter."

"What are you talking about? You're in every class with Monika, why do you think I did that?"

"I mean, I'm not complaining about that. I just don't want to go through school again."

"Ryan, just get up. There'll be pancakes when you come down."

He groaned and cuddled deeply into the mattress. I rolled my eyes and walked out of the room, heading to the kitchen. I grabbed a red handle skillet and slapped it down on the stove, turning the knob to 6. The electric stove lit up, a large ring of red appeared around the pan's bottom. I prepared a decent amount of pancakes and split them up on two plates. I hunched over and dug my fork into my pancakes. I cut into the bread and dragged it into my mouth.

 _Needs syrup..._

A few minutes later I heard the door close upstairs. I looked over, Ryan slowly walked down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and resting his hand on the wall.

"He has risen." I sung.

"Meh, where's my food?" He grunted, stumbling over to the counter.

I pointed down in front of me at the pancakes, "right there you blind bitch."

He grabbed the plate the syrup then turned to me with a confused look. "Where's the butter?"

I looked at the pancakes and a small slice of butter appeared on top. It slowly melted, causing it pool over the rim of the stack.

"Happy?" I asked.

"Yep." He replied walking away with the plate.

* * *

I walked away with the plate Gaje gave me. I plunged the fork into the top of the stack and set the plate down on the table as I sat down. I reached over for the plate and put it in my lap. As I cut off little snips of pancakes and shoveled them into my mouth I saw Petey's head perk up every time my fork clanked against the plate.

"Are you hungry Petey?" I asked, rubbing the top of his head.

"Yeah he probably is." Gaje interjected, walking through the hall that lead to the backyard. "C'mon Petey, outside!" He yelled.

Petey slowly got on his paws and hopped off the couch, prancing into the hallway.

I heard the door slide close. Gaje walked back in and turned to me, "I'm going to shower, we're gonna leave in like 15 minutes. So get dressed soon."

"Okah." I replied, mouth full.

Gaje walked away, I began devouring pancakes quickly, letting the syrup and butter coat my mouth. I placed the plate in the sink and left a thing layer of water on the top of it to allow it to soak. I headed upstairs to my room, I could hear Gaje messing around with the dials, muttering to himself. "Was it this way? Or... no. THAT WAY! Wait. No."

I chuckled slightly and entered my room and opening my closet. I grabbed the hangers out of the closet and laid them out across the bed. I changed into my uniform and patted them down from shoulders to knees, getting rid of wrinkles and creases. I walked out of my room, Gaje had finally turned the shower on. I was walking by when I heard him yell.

"TOO FUCKING HOT!"

I couldn't help but laugh at his pain, knowing he had too felt the wrath of the watery beast. I sat down at the couch, trying to catch a few more minutes of z's before we leave. I still couldn't believe I was actually here, it was all too surreal. I caught myself thinking about how I would approach Monika, I always acted awkward around her, though I was getting more and more used to it.

"Okay! Let's go." Gaje said as he ran down the stairs. He shot around the room picking up his bag and accessories. "Wait, I didn't finish my pancakes, hold on."

He picked up the plate on the side of the counter and began quickly shoveling it down.

"why didn't you eat before you showered?" I asked.

"Because, I forgot." He answered, stuffing his face.

"Just hurry, time's a wastin'."

He turned the plate on its side, the remaining pancake sloppily flopped onto his face. He pushed down the pancake swallowing it whole like a snake.

 _ **BUUURP**_

He wiped his face with a napkin and turned back to me, "okay now we can go."

"I'm not even gonna question what I just saw." I said.

We walked out into the bright world, the sun like yesterday was harsh, it felt like we were under a magnifying glass. Gaje took the lead, sprinting down the sidewalk to Sayori's house, leaving me to slowly walk my way there. Though, I eventually caught up to him. I looked down at his feet, he was steadily tapping it against the sidewalk.

"You okay? You seem a little… jittery." I asked

"Hmm? Yeah, yeah. I'm fine." He quickly said, brushing it off.

"What's bothering you?" I asked, trying to press him.

"Uh… nothing." He replied irritably.

"Alright, whatever."

We sat there, patiently waiting for Sayori so the three of us could walk to hell.

 _Why does Gaje get to skip the day, and I'm in class stuck wi-with… well, actually I'm fine with that aspect. Yesterday was tedious to say the least, but today, I feel rejuvenated, ready to greet the day with open arms and a "fuck you world" attitude._

"Morning!" Sayori said, as she burst through the gate.

"Ohayou Sayori." I said.

Gaje rolled his eyes at me then turned back to her. "Good morning Sayori."

"Today's going to be so much fun!" Sayori cheered.

"What's going on today?" I asked.

"We're go- woops! I almost spilled the beans ehehe, it's a surprise, for everyone!"

"It's something for the festival." Gaje blurted out.

"W-wha? H-how'd you find out!? No fair!" Sayori pouted.

"I didn't it was just a guess." He teased.

"Ah! No! I was too gullible!" She cried.

Gaje smiled slightly and turned back to the sidewalk. So far, these walks weren't particularly exciting or anything, we'd usually just walk in silence, with the occasional comment by Sayori or Gaje. Most of the time it was just sightseeing for Gaje and I. We eventually crossed the street that lead straight to the school. I could see the building over the horizon growing larger and larger. The school was gigantic, like something straight out of an anime, a slice-of-lice anime. It made sense, Gaje's favorite type of anime had always been slice-of-life. If only he liked Gundam, this place would be 100 times cooler. The school towered above us as we all walked through the entrance into the halls. The halls were crowded, deafening with the conversations of hundreds of students.

"I'll see you both at the club!" Sayori said loudly, walking away.

"Peace Say-O." Gaje said.

"Bye." I said.

Gaje turned to me quickly and scratched the corner of his eye, "well. I guess I'll see you at the club, I'm gonna go out to the courtyard for a bit and read with Yuri. I kind of ditched her yesterday, but she didn't seem to mind. Though she might've just been being polite... anyways, I'll catch ya later, good luck with Monika."

"I'm gonna try my best." I said as we split up.

I wandered through the halls, making my way through the crowds of students. My bag shifted every so often, causing the strap slowly slipped off my shoulder. I opened the door to my English class, I looked at the corner where I sit, Monika wasn't here yet. I took my seat and set my backpack on the hook on my desk. I looked out the window as I awaited the bell, I saw Gaje lazily slumped in his bench.

I heard movement behind me, I turned to see Monika. She laid her bag down at the desk side and sat down. She had her legs crossed over underneath the desk.

 _Alright Ryan, I got this. Let's go!_

"Morning Monika." I said.

"Hey Ryan." She softly responded.

"Having a good mornin' so far?"

"Mhm."

"Sorry about yesterday, I didn't mean to fall asleep in the club. It won't happen again." I apologized.

"No you're fine, Gaje told me what happened the other day."

"Yeah, it was tiring. And, thanks for the help yesterday with all the work, I was really lost."

"No problem." She said, dawning a perfect smile.

I blushed deeply and buried my face into the desk.

"Please grab your English books from the table and open to page 102." The teacher proclaimed.

Monika and I stood up at the same time.

"You're fine Ryan, I'll get you one just stay here." She said.

"Oh no, it's fine Monika, I can do it." I replied.

"Are you sure?"

"Ah, yeah I'm sure."

"Okay."

Everyone stood up and lined up, one by one grabbing their books. Monika stood in front of me, when it was her turn to grab the textbooks she grabbed two and passed one back to me.

"Oh, thanks." I said

We walked back to our seats

"Whatcha lookin' at?" Monika asked.

I perked up, "ah, just watching Gaje and Yuri, they're reading some book."

Monika leaned closer, peering over my shoulder. Her face was right next to mine, I blushed and recoiled, leaning back.

"Hmm, and here I thought that Gaje and Natsuki were getting pretty close. Looks like I lose that bet with Sayori."

"You guys are making bets? On what?"

"Oh… it's nothing. Just a little wager, nothing too outlandish." She responded, retreating to her seat.

"Alright."

We all looked to the teacher for further instructions. She stood up at the podium momentarily and adjusted her glasses, "okay... everyone please finish reading that chapter then answer the review questions at the end. Questions 1 through 23."

I heard other students sigh loudly and dejectedly open their books. I turned to the page and began reading. I pulled out my notebook and began writing down all the questions, going back and forth looking for the answers in the chapter. 40 minutes of that and I had finally finished. Monika and I seemed to be the only ones who finished.

"Alright everyone, please pass up your assignments to the front of your row." The teacher insisted. "Tomorrow we'll be reading the last chapter of that unit, then we'll take a test going over it."

She picked up all the stacks from each row, and dropped them onto a pile on her desk.

The bell rung throughout the room, shuffling of feet and scuffing of bags against wood vocalized in the room.

"Have a good day." The teacher exclaimed as students poured out of the room.

I stood up and slung my bag over my arm. I looked out the window one last time, Yuri was walking back inside. Gaje began walking into the building as well.

 _Where's he going?_

"You ready to go Ryan?" Monika asked, tapping my shoulder.

"Oh uh yeah, let's go."

As we walked to Chemistry I couldn't help getting lost in my own mind. _Every class, sitting side by side her… I think I can get used to this. It'll help me get closer to her._

Chemistry was, complicated. Ms. Kiri, the teacher who was supposed to be in there was out for the day, so we had a substitute who didn't understand the material she left behind. Afterwards Monika and I separated during lunch where she met up with Sayori and Natsuki. I took my lunch outside to the courtyard, when I got out there I saw Gaje lying on the bench. I sat beside him, he didn't budge.

"Gaje." I said poking his arm. "Wake up, you're gonna miss lunch."

"Bleh, I'll make some food later, go away. I'm tired."

"Why'd you leave the courtyard after first period?" I asked, picking up a spoonful of rice.

"I went to take a piss. Why, were you spying on me?"

"No, I just happened to see you leaving the courtyard."

"Mhm…"

"Shut up."

He shrugged, and leaned back into the bench, closing his eyes.

I lifted the spoon up and I finished the last bite of my meal, "well, I should probably get going. I'll see ya Gaje."

"Bye."

I walked back into the cafeteria l I threw my plate in the garbage. The bell rang, and I started making my way up the stairs to Calculus.

"Wait up Ryan!"

I turned around, Monika was quickly walking up the stairs to catch up to me. I stopped moving, allowing her to reach me.

"Oh there you are Monika, I was wondering where you went." I said.

"I finished talking to the others, so I was looking for you. They all have different classes, so it's nice to have someone to talk to throughout the day."

"Yeah, I feel the same. I'm glad I have someone I can talk to."

Monika smiled at my comment, we walked into the class and took our seats. I set down my bag as the teacher started telling us to take out our notebooks and textbooks. I reached under my desk to grab a textbook, but there wasn't one there.

I raised my hand, "umm…. Ms. Hira I don't have textbook under my desk."

She looked around the room, searching for a space book. "Just share with Monika for today will you hon?"

I turned my head towards Monika, she was smiling angelically.

"Looks like we're working together." She said.

I felt my face get warm. "Alright, I-if you don't mind sharing that is."

"I don't, here." She responded, standing up.

We pushed our desks together, our shoulders were nearly touching. She opened up the textbook and we both began doing the work the teacher had assigned. As we worked I glanced over at Monika. Her eyes were traced on the book, I could see her eyes dart from word to word. I was mesmerized, unable to stop looking at her.

She turned, meeting my gaze. "Is something the matter Ryan?"

"Umm…. I was…. nothing." I stumbled, looking away. My face was scalding, it felt like I could catch fire any minute.

Monika also looked away, back to the textbook. "You know you blush a lot." She said, not taking her eyes off the book.

"I… I do? I think it's just the heat." I said laughing it off.

"Yeah… it is a bit hot in here." She said, quickly raising her hand. "Ms. Hira, can we turn on the air?"

Ms. Hira nodded and turned on the a/c. Perks of being the most popular person in school.

Monika smiled back at me, "there."

"Thanks."

The bells called out our dismissal once more. Monika and I separated our desks and began packing up our things.

"Thanks again. I really appreciate it." I said as I stuffed my notebook in my bag.

"It's no problem at all. You ready to go?" She asked, as she gracefully slid her bags strap over her shoulder.

"Yep, after you." I said, moving over to the door.

We both walked outside the classroom and headed towards World History. The class went normally, nothing really happened. The only thing was that Monika would consistently help me with my work, though I had told her I was okay.

When we left the class together Monika looked to me and asked, "did you write your poem for today?"

"Yeah I did, I worked really hard on this one. I don't really write poems so hopefully it isn't too bad." I replied.

"I thought Gaje said that you wrote poems all the time?" She asked, bewildered.

I scratched the back of my head "he did? I-ugh-uh. Yea… I'm sorry about that, I think Gaje just wanted to make me look good in front of you guys. I've never actually written a poem. This is the first time I've ever put any effort into one."

"Why didn't you just say so? If you needed help I could've helped you, or even Yuri. She is the smartest of us after all."

"I thought you'd be angry, sorry."

"Well that'd be a bit petty if you ask me. If anything I'd be mad at Gaje, but I know his heart was in the right place."

Monika opened the door to the Literature Club, we were the first ones to arrive. I set my stuff down at a desk in the front row and took my seat. I pulled out my paper and began reading over my poem. I tried to keep my attention on the paper, but I kept getting distracted by Monika. The sun's rays shone on her face perfectly as she arranged her things, illuminating her enchanting eyes. I was so mesmerized by her beauty that I hadn't noticed Natsuki and Yuri enter the room.

"Hello!?" Natsuki shouted, waving her hand in my face.

"Huh? O-oh my bad, what's up Natsuki." I said, breaking out of my trance.

"H-have you seen Gaje? He's usually here by now." She said, sporting a sad frown.

"Probably walking with Sayori, he should be here any minute."

"O-okay, thanks."

"No problem." I replied, watching as she walked to the closet.

When she walked into the closet I heard the front door slam open.

"Sayori and G-Zage in the BUILDIIIIING!" Yelled Gaje, as he and Sayori stood back to back with their arms crossed.

Gaje was grinning widely, like he was on the verge of hysterical laughter, at the same time I could hear Yuri giggling from behind her book.

"What the hell was that?" I asked.

"I don't know, I thought it'd be fun. Was it not?" Gaje asked, looking to Sayori.

"I had fun!" She said back.

"I see how it is. You guys are having fun without me." I said, sniffling.

Gaje blankly stared at me, "yep. I'm having more fun with Sayori than with you."

"That's mean Gaje." Sayori pouted.

"It's just a joke, he knows that." He responded.

"Nice prank bro." I said.

"See Sayori, he knows." Gaje said.

"You two are _so_ cute together." Monika said looking at Gaje and Sayori.

"Okay." Gaje responded, in a sheepish tone.

I could see Sayori's cheek brighten at Monika's comment, her already wide smile, growing ever larger.

"Agh! You guys are so loud!" Natsuki huffed.

"Sorry." Gaje said.

"Be sorry all you want, you guys made me drop my manga, so as punishment you can pick it up! Then we can finish reading it."

"Actually Natsuki, we unfortunately won't have time for that." Monika interrupted.

"W-what!? Why?" Natsuki whined.

Monika turned to us all, gathering our attention, "well as you all know, the festival is coming up soon. And, Sayori and I decided that we would be doing a performance for anyone who comes to check us out. By sharing our poems!"

The room fell deathly quiet. I looked around at the others, Yuri and Natsuki looked terrified, Gaje's face was empty.

"N-no way! I-I can't do that!" Natsuki said panicked.

"Y-yeah…" Yuri softly chimed in. "Sharing with you guys is one thing b-but I don't know…"

"C'mon girls! You can do it!" Sayori cheered on.

She looked at Gaje, I could see him dying inside.

"Ah, fuck, me." He moaned.

"Gaje…. language!" I barked.

"Shut the hell up Ryan."

"What's the matter?" Sayori asked him.

"N-nothing, I just have really bad stage fright." He said, progressively getting quieter.

"You do!?" Sayori said surprised. "I never knew that."

"Y-yeah…"

"See Monika! Not even Gaje wants to do it, and I doubt Ryan wants to do it either, right Ryan!?" Natsuki asked, seeking my aid.

Monika looked down with a saddened expression, "I'm sorry, I was so caught up in the idea that I neglected to consider how you all felt..."

"Well... I thought it was a good idea." I said

Natsuki smacked her teeth, "kiss up."

I stared at her and shrugged, "what?"

 _It's really not a bad idea…_

"I admit I should've probably let you guys know sooner, but we just got permission to through with it today. And, Sayori and I have been working on it since Monday." Monika said.

"Honestly, I'm fine with it. I just know that it's gonna hurt." Gaje spoke up.

"You too!?" Natsuki scowled.

"Sorry Nat." Gaje said.

She blushed, "I told you not to call me that!"

She swung her arm, punching him in the shoulder.

Gaje stood still for a second, as if he was processing what had just happened.

"OH GOD THE HUMANITY. WHY!? WHY!?" Gaje screamed, clutching his arm and slowly falling to the ground. He curled into the fetal position and sniffled, but then swiftly got back to his feet, "nah I'm just kidding."

"Goddammit gaje." I said annoyed.

Sayori stifled her laughter, hiding her face.

Natsuki crossed her arms and turned away, "fine. I'll do it, but not happily."

"Well then it's up to your vote Yuri." Monika said.

"I uh… oh jeez. I suppose since everyone else is doing it, I'll have to try." Yuri softly said.

"Then let's start practicing!" Monika said.

"Wait we're doing it now?" Gaje asked.

"Yeah, we don't have much time between now and Monday." She replied.

Once again I could see Gaje's face descend into the nothingness, he knew this was coming, but apparently that didn't matter.

"Did you write a poem last night Ryan?" Monika asked me. "I'd like for you to perform as well."

"Unfortunately... yes." I replied.

"Good, I didn't want you to be left out of the fun!" She said.

 _I wish I was._

We all moved to the front row, we pushed the desks together, surrounding the podium at the front of the room. Everyone but Monika took a seat.

"Alright, since I'm the one who thought of this, I'll be going first." Monika said as she moseyed on over to the podium. She pulled out her paper and laid it out on the stand and began reading it out thoroughly. She never minced her words, she was always directly on point. The meaning was clear-cut, for all to hear, I could feel all the emotions she had transferred from herself to her pen. Her pain, her sorrow, her happiness and confusion. Once again, I caught myself mesmerized. When she finished I was hesitant to clap, I didn't want to be the first to do so.

"Wow. That was, um… wow." Gaje muttered, as he slowly clapped.

 _He wasn't paying any attention was he?_

"That was so good Monika!" Sayori said.

"It was okay I guess." Natsuki mumbled.

"It was quite impressive." Yuri said.

Monika took a bow and stepped down from the podium, "alright who's next?"

Everybody eyed each other, Gaje stared directly into his desk.

"Gaje looks like he wants to go up there!" I said

His head cocked, he slowly stared into my soul. All I could see was a murder case.

"C'mon Gaje." Sayori said patting his back.

Gaje dropped his head, face planting onto the desk. A muffled sentence managed to make its way out from his mouth, "can I go last?"

"Jeez fine, I'll go, you big baby!" Natsuki said.

She jumped out of her desk and stomped over to the podium, a confidant smirk plastered on her face. She slapped the paper down and looked back at the rest of us. Her smirk drained immediately, a nervous grin taking its place.

"Well. Ms. I can do it, we're waiting." Gaje mocked.

"S-shutup!" She looked down at her paper once more, "m-my poems called, The Rabbit I Thought Gross."

She cleared her throat, and began reading off her poem. "A bunny, smaller than most. A rabbit, who I thought to be gross. When in pain, no one saw. Save that rabbit, who would never withdraw."

I could see Gaje's brows furrowing, as if he was trying to determine something.

"The rabbit became my hero. He saw in me, where most saw zero. Now I see he is a friend, who's friendship I never want to end… but I want more."

Natsuki looked up at us nervously. No one was clapping, everyone just stared. I looked to Gaje, usually he was the one to always clap no matter what. I nudged him.

He looked at me, "huh? Oh!" He turned back and started clapping loudly, although that just made the situation all the more awkward.

"Seriously!? Only Gaje!?" Natsuki said.

The others slowly followed Gaje's lead, clapping lightly.

"S-sorry Natsuki, we were just a bit aghast at your performance." Yuri apologized.

"Yeah we were August!" Sayori mimicked.

"Aghast." Gaje corrected Sayori.

"Ah, gassed." Sayori sounded out. "Aghast!"

"Whatever!" Natsuki said, storming down back to her seat.

Monika chuckled nervously, "a-alright, who next?"

"I'll go!" Yuri blurted. "I mean, I'll do it, sorry."

Monika gestured to the podium, "she's all yours."

Yuri, unlike the others was obviously nervous, you could see the sheer terror on her face. She began whispering to herself and taking deep breaths.

"You can do it Yuri!" Sayori said encouragingly.

Yuri smiled at her, but it quickly faded as she looked to her poem. She gave no warning, instantly she began reading aloud, no word was left without emphasis, it was like she was reading us a horror story you share at a campfire. With each waking line you could feel the tension in the room rising and falling. All embarrassment Yuri showed in the beginning had vanished, it had been replaced by a confident woman. She kept her eyes closed for its entirety, like she was imagining the poems scene unfold before her.

She stopped reading, the room was devoid of noise, everyone was in pure awe, none of us expected that. Though the awe was cut short by Gaje, who yawned loudly while clapping slowly, "that was impressive Yuri. You didn't hesitate or screw up a single time."

"T-thank you Gaje."

"Yeah Yuri, I knew you had it in you!" Sayori said.

Yuri blushed softly and stumbled over to her seat, where she was met with more praise.

"Me next!" Sayori shouted, wasting no time.

She got up on the podium, her cheerful smile taking no hit from our presence in front of here. Though she stood there for quite a bit just remaining silent. Her smile faded to a nervous expression, "this is actually harder than I thought it'd be."

"See!" Natsuki blurted out.

"You got this, you can do it!" Gaje cheered.

"Right. I got this! I-uhh… I'm lost. Hold on!" She sorted through scattered papers around the stand. "Uhh… here! Okay."

Sayori jittered around, bouncing ever so slightly in place as she read. Her cheerful tone darkening over time, giving the poem a much more deeper feeling. I caught a glimpse of Gaje's face, he was glued to Sayori's performance, making this the only poem he paid 100% attention to.

"And that's all!"

The loudest clap, I have ever heard in my life, erupted from Gaje's hands, turning into a rapid and harsh barrage of claps. The noise nearly made me deaf in my right ear. He soon seemed to notice the annoyance, as everyone else was cringing in pain. He slowed his clapping and laid his hands on the table.

"Sorry…"

"Okay... now it's between you two, Gaje said he wanted to go last, so Ryan this'll be the first time we get to hear your writing" Monika said.

I looked to Gaje, "h-hey Gaje you're going to volunteer ri-"

"No."

 _Such a fast answer._

"Alright I guess I- alright let's do it!"

I triumphantly stepped up to the podium, only adding insult to injury to my nerves. I looked out at everyone, taking in the sight of my final resting place.

 _Ahh, goodbye world._

I looked at Gaje intensely, giving him a "you a bitch!" glare. He slowly raised his hands, giving me two thumbs up. "Woo! Go Ryan!"

"Alright… I'm gonna read my poem now."

I looked to Monika, she looked intrigued, attentive.

 _Look away. Please._

"Okay…" I began reading the poem, trying my best not to stumble over every line, though I had to reread a word or two. I could feel their beady eyes on me, like wild animals looking at a fresh kill.

"...together." I finished.

Gaje, as usual was the first to make a noise, though this one wasn't one of cheering.

"Boo, you suck! Nah I'm just kidding."

He clapped like he had for all the others, followed by Sayori and Monika. I stepped down, sighing loudly.

"And now the moment I've been not waiting for." Gaje said. "It's my time to burn, my time to crash and die, my time. To read my poem."

Sayori, Natsuki, and Yuri all gave him words of encouragement as he walked up.

 _Where was my encouragement?_

He hunched over on the stand, causing it to wobble. He cleared his throat, thrice. "My poem is entitled, uh, Random Thoughts... I walk down an empty hallway do-dodging the crowd. Hidden, blending in, like a shroud. I open the door, familiar faces beckon my emotion to rise. I dawn a cheerful glow, though I know it is untrue. I look over to you, innocent and untainted, what would a travesty do to you? How would bodily harm affect you? How would you like to die, how do you plan to live? Anyways, what should I make for dinner? I feel my stomach getting thinner. Gluttony is my sin. And I am a deadly sinner."

No one really knew what to do when he finished reading. I figured everyone would just be confused. It was pretty good, though don't know if it was actually meant to mean anything or if it was actually just his "random thoughts."

Sayori was the first to start clapping. "Wow Gaje that was really good!"

"Yea Gaje that was phenomenal" Said Yuri.

"It wasn't bad, but mine was million times better." Natsuki teased.

"I didn't expect you to read your poem so well. Good Job." Monika said.

Gaje walked down from the poem, I could see a wave of relief come over him as he took his seat next to me. Monika walked back over, standing behind the podium.

"Well, now that everyone has gotten a taste of what's to come, are you guys feeling any better about it?" She asked.

"I guess... I do better in front of people I don't know than in front of friends." Natsuki said.

"Yea, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, so yeah, I'm prepared. " Yuri agreed.

"No, I'm not, I still don't want to be here." Gaje complained.

Sayori leaned over from her desk, hugging him from from the side, "c'mon you were great! You'll be fine, pleaaaaase!?"

Gaje squirmed, "I, n-ugh. Fine! Just let go."

"Yay! Score two for Sayori!"

"Loss two for G-Zage…"

"Good job Sayori." I said. "Gaje never wants to do anything."

Gaje held up his index finger, preparing a retort of some sort, but he held his tongue. I assume due to him realizing I was telling the truth.

"I _don't_ like doing anything." Gaje moaned.

"Too bad Gaje, If i'm doing it, you are going to as well." I told him.

Gaje lifted his head, "yeah, yeah."

"Now that that's settled, I'm gonna go ahead and end the club a little earlier today, so we will pick this up tomorrow." She looked to Sayori, "Sayori and I still have some stuff to go over before anything else."

I slumped down on my desk in exhaustion. _Man that took a lot of energy out of me. I don't know if I'll be able to read during the festival_.

"Ryan, get up, hey." Gaje said shaking me around.

"You guys go without me today I'll meet you at the house." I said with my head still on the desk.

"Okay. C'mon Sayori, we're going without him." Gaje said, leaving me to wallow in my self deprecating sadness.

I looked at the two of them walk out of the door, both smiling and talking. _Man, I haven't seen Gaje that happy ever. They both look happy. I wonder when he'll tell her... I can't really say anything though, I'm still too afraid to say anything to Monika._

As I was lost in my train of thought Monika walked up to me " You thinking about something Ryan?"

"What? No nothing I'm just hanging around."

"Well I just came over to say that I really liked your performance, it really surprised me."

"Oh yea thanks, I'm glad you liked it. I worked really hard on it so it's good to know someone enjoyed it."

"I'm happy that you're taking the club seriously. Yesterday it looked like you were just dragged in by Gaje against your will, but today you looked to be enjoying yourself."

My face erupted in heat at her stunning smile, "Well…. Thanks. I'm…. really, I." I stuttered, losing my train of thought. I could feel the heat from her face. She had a scent of vanilla permeating from her skin.

She leaned in closer. "It's not too hot in here, is it?"

"Maybe… a little."

I could feel my heart beating out of my chest, there was no way I could sit there any longer. Thankfully Natsuki came to my rescue.

"Monika can you quit teasing Ryan for a second, I need to talk to him."

Monika pulled back, "I wasn't teasing him, I was talking to him about his performance."

"Okay… well Ryan can I talk to you alone real quick?"

"Y-yeah sure…"

I slowly stood up and followed Natsuki back to the closet. I looked back at Monika who was waving at me.

 _She totally knows!_

Natsuki closed the closet doors, the room was nearly pitch black. It instantly lit up as she turned on the lightbulb hanging from the top. I shielded my eyes and looked down to the floor.

"Okay, so you're friends with Gaje right?" She asked.

I blinked rapidly, getting adjusted to the light.

"Yeah I've known gaje for all my life. About two days."

"Yeah yeah. You two live together though right?"

"Yeah."

"Has he, ever talked about… me?"

"Well… I mean, I guess."

"What has he said!?" She asked excitedly.

"Uh well, I don't know. He doesn't really make a lot of sense sometimes."

"What would you know." She growled.

"You would be surprised, I know a lot."

"Whatever. Never mind, just go." She said pointing to the doors.

"Well i'm sorry that i could not help you out. Gaje just does not like talking about things. So it can be annoying."

I started to open the doors, but was stopped by a small arm.

"Wait! I-I, don't leave yet. I don't like talking about this kind of thing, it's too sappy!"

I patted her head, "it's okay Natsuki, You can talk to me about stuff if you nee-"

"I think I like Gaje!"

 _Well then, I was not expecting her to just blurt it out in front of me._

"Well!? Say something!"

"I don't know what to say! I wasn't expecting that!"

I let the information churn and swirl in my mind. I still had no idea what to say. I looked at her pout expression, no matter what I said, this would not end well.

"So who have you told, besides me?"

"N-no one. I was going to tell Yuri, but she wouldn't understand."

"Man, I don't know what to say. Just give me a minute, still processing."

I turned away from her sight. This sucks… i can't just sit here silent. I need to evade this fast.

"Look… I'll tell you who I like." I said nervously.

"W-who you like?"

"Yea, who I like. She may be in the club."

"It's Monika." She said.

"Who told you? Was it sayori?"

"No, it was the way you get flustered around her 24/7, duh. And why would Sayori tell me? Wait does she know!?"

"Uh, well I see you get flustered all the time too!"

"W-wha? No I don't!"

"Yea you do, Look at your face!"

"I can't look at my own face you baka!" She said angrily.

"okay, lets just calm down a second here." I said, holding up my hands.

Her face relaxed, "okay… I'm calm."

"That got a little heated there for a sec huh." I said chuckling

"Yeah… anyways! So yeah I wanted to ask if Gaje had ever mentioned anything about me, but you didn't know… so."

"What now?"

"I-I don't know, I didn't think it through this far."

"Well, I'm glad that you wanted to talk to me about it. Sorry I'm not much of a help."

"Yeah you were pretty useless." She said laughing.

"Wow, I see how it is then. I guess I'll just leave then." I said jokingly.

She started to tear up, "t-thanks for the help though, I really needed to get that off of my chest."

"No problem Nat, is there anything else you need to get off your chest?"

"Did you just call me Nat? Don't call me that."

"What's wrong with Nat, it's so _kawaii_."

"First of all, don't ever say that again. Secondly it makes me sound like a bug!"

"Well, I can say those words, I read manga too, you _baka_."

"You're stupid. You _baka_." She said giggling.

We both started to laugh uncontrollably, as we laughed the door to the closet opened slightly, a worried face peered in, it was Yuri.

"Is everything okay in here?"

"Yep, everything is fine." I said

"Yeah, everything _was_ fine! We were trying to have a private conversation Yuri!"

Yuri blushed ever so slightly, I think she was getting the wrong idea. "O-oh, I'm sorry I didn't reali- oh jeez." She closed the doors quickly.

Natsuki and I talked for a few minutes afterwards. Though, we got sidetracked and ended up just talking about our favorite manga. She lent me a volume of a manga called _Nijiiro Days._ It's a slice-of-life about four boys overcoming daily struggles. She told me that it was a manga she picked up recently, and that she really liked it. I walked out of the closet manga in hand and stuffed it into my bag. I picked it up and waved to Monika and Yuri, "well I suppose I should get going now. Bye everyone."


	10. Quiet before the Storm

I turned the handle and pushed the door open. I walked through the living room, lazily tossing my bag to the side. I walked out to the backyard, opened the door, and followed Petey back into the living room. He curled up on the couch and sputtered like a car engine.

I smirked and pet his soft head as he looked up at me with his squinting eyes. "Why don't you ever sit anywhere else?" His glare was fixated on me. I stopped petting and walked away, retreating upstairs. I hopped into my bed and lied there, sprawled out. I had no idea what to do, even with all my powers. Boredom really is a hell of a thing. I stared into the roof, the roof I had looked at everyday. I would count the cracks and indentations, but I had finished counting it all yesterday. There were 235 different blemishes on the roof, ranging in size.

As I sat there I could hear Natsuki's voice, reading her poem. I didn't want to feel narcissistic, but I knew that that poem was about me. Every time I would attempt to push it out of my mind it would poke its head back in. I started spouting random nonsense out loud, drowning out my inner voice.

It was beginning to anger me, I felt pressure building up in my chest the longer it went on. I closed my eyes and tried to breathe slowly, but the pain didn't go away. I walked back down to the kitchen and opened the freezer. I had left myself a supply of chocolate ice cream. I sat at the table in the kitchen, eating spoonful after spoonful. Yet, the pressure didn't go away. I had the urge to scream, and... I did. I yelled as loud as I could, I felt my head shaking, the scratching against my vocal chords. I coughed violently when I finished, I struggled to catch my breath. I held my arm over my mouth, catching little blips of spit. I looked over to Petey, who was cowering from my shriek.

"It's, _cough_ , okay Petey."

The coughing subsided as I knelt down to his side. I pressed my head against his stomach and hugged him tightly. I let go and stood up, feeling anew. With my newfound energy I called out to nothing, "alright. I'm gonna do it. I'm telling her." I ruffled Petey's head and walked away, emerging outside. The sky outside had darkened, no longer a clear blue sky, but now a warm orange hue. I continued down the sidewalk, nearing Sayori's home, as I placed my hand on the gate I spotted Ryan. He was barely visible as he walked over the horizon. I could see he had his hands shoved in his pockets.

I waited for him to walk up I reached my hand out and tapped his shoulder. "Welcome back! Anything _juicy_ happen after we left?"

"Oh, hey Gaje... What did you say? Wasn't paying any attention."

"I said, anything _juicy_ happen?"

"Um… Yea, you could say that."

"Noice, let me know later, I've got something I need to do real quick, so I'll catch you later."

"Okay, Just be ready to talk for a bit. It's important."

"I doubt it's as important as this…" I said. He walked past me and began making his way home. I opened the gate and I was about to do the same to her front door, but as I went to grab the door handle I hesitated and pulled my hand back. I pulled out my phone and stared at her contact info for a few seconds, I began to have second thoughts about the whole thing.

 _I'm already here. It would be a waste of time to not do anything…_

I started up a message and sent it to her. I asked if it was okay for me to come over. And, as I expected, she sent me an instant reply.

"Yeah sure!" She texted.

I waited around for a few minutes, making it seem as if I had just started walking over. Though in hindsight that was probably a terrible idea. Sitting there only furthered the angst I felt. I knew that she felt the same way, but the idea of saying the words just irked me. I closed my eyes and opened the door. The living room was empty, quiet and dark. I saw the stairway light on and assumed she was in her room. I walked up the stairs and knocked, "Sayori? I'm here."

"Just a sec!"

I leaned against the wall, digging my shoulder into it. I looked at her door, there was a mirror hanging down on it. Looking at my face, you'd never be able to tell I was feeling anything else besides boredom. Most of the times my expressions never matched my emotion. I scratched the side of my head and sighed. _I'm really going to do this?_

The doorknob turned slowly and she opened the door. She stood in her pink shirt and blue jean shorts, her casual attire

"Hey Gaje."

"Hi." I paused, staring at nothing.

 _Should I just say it outright now or hint at it first? There really is no easy way to do it. Wait. I could've just texted it!_

"Are you coming in?"

"Oh, yeah, sorry."

Sayori crawled onto her bed, there was copious amounts of paper scattered about it. I stood at the edge of the bed looking down at the carpet.

"Why are you just standing there silly? Sit down.."

"R-right." I sat barely on the edge of the bed, any movement would have knocked me off.

"So why'd you want to come over?" She began filling in the paper with a marker.

"Oh, I just wanted to talk… Why do you ask?" I looked at her, she was sitting criss-crossed.

"Just wonderin!" She answered.

"So yeah I wanted to talk and...yeah."

I slowly pushed myself up onto the bed, the blanket was soft. My feet dangled over the edge, I stared into my shoes, observing the scratched up aglet on my shoe

"Okay, about what?" She held up one of the pieces of paper up and squinted at it.

"About… us." I twiddled my thumbs looked at her deadpan.

"About us? What about us?"

"We've been friends for a while now, right?"

"13 years and counting!"

 _Jesus, really?_

"Yeah, and I… _sigh_ … Jesus I really can't say it."

"Say what?" She dropped the paper and crawled to my side. She was close enough that me moving in any way would grind against her body.

I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth. "I. I can't. I re-really can't."

"C'mon tell me, it's nothing bad right?"

"No... it's far from it."

"Is it about me stealing your lunch yesterday?"

"Wait, that was you?" I shook my head, "no, no, that's not it.

She looked down, she seemed to be in deep thought, trying to discern my issue.

"It's nothing trivial like that Sayori. It's, it's bigger than those things."

"Hmm… I don't know. What is it?"

 _Why couldn't you just guess?_

I tried to think of some way to tell her, without saying it specifically. I licked my lips and made a _pop_. I breathed out, I could feel some of my nerves leave with it.

"Okay! You know, how Ryan likes Monika?"

"Ahuh…" She nodded.

"Okay so... switch me out for Ryan and... and you out for Monika."

"Okay…"

I looked down at her, she seemed confused. She started muttering to herself as she sat in thought.

"Gaje, likes, Sayori..? Gaje likes Sayori…" her eyes lit up, finally realizing what I was saying. "W-wait... you... like me?"

I exhaled once more loudly, "y-yes!" The weight I had been carrying flew away. I wanted to laugh but, I had the feeling I might've had to clarify, Sayori may not be dumb, but she can be clueless sometimes. "And by like, I mean, as more than friends."

"You're sure?" She said softly.

"I'm sure. And _now_ it's _your_ turn." I said in a slightly higher pitch. "How do you feel?"

"I, I've always… l-liked you. I-I just never had the heart to say so, I thought you'd think I was just a nuisance."

"What have I done to make you think that?" I looked into her eyes, they were despondent, dark.

"I-I don't know, you haven't, it's just… my mind plays tricks on me. It's like a rain cloud over me, filling my head with mean thoughts." She covered her head with her hands, showing me an analogy for it.

 _The rain clouds… that means she's still holding onto her depression. Hopefully not as much._

"How long have you felt this 'rain cloud,' over you?"

Her eyes were glistening, like she was on the verge of tears. "Since middle school."

"Have you talked to anyone else about it?"

"No…" A single tear dripped down her cheek, falling off her chin.

I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and squeezed. "Don't listen to the cloud Sayori, it's wrong."

I could feel my heart tightening. I wanted to hug her tighter, I didn't want to let go. She wrapped her arm around me and nuzzled her face in my chest.

"So… this is it." She whispered.

"This is what?"

"What love feels like... It's… nice."

I cradled her skull with me hand and pulled her in closer. I laid my chin over top of her head and closed my eyes. "It really is." I kept a hold of her for a few moments more, but slowly I let go and looked her in the eyes, "are you alright now?"

She nodded and smiled sadly.

"So... are we like, boyfriend and girlfriend now? I-I don't really know how this works."

"I'd like for us to be."

"Then that we are." I said smiling. "I should probably get back home, still got to write my poem and everything."

She scooted over, allowing me space to stand. "Alr-alright... I'm glad you came over."

"I am too. Goodnight Sayori."

"Goodnight..."

I closed her front door and leaned into it with my back. I slid down it, falling to the concrete steps. I sighed out groaned, letting my sleeve catch most of the volume. I pushed myself up, scuffing my hand against the floor. I pat my pants and started making my way out. I strolled back to the house, with a spring in my step. The door seemed to be locked, I didn't bother knocking or pulling out my keys, I kept my stride and phased through it.

"Ryan!" I yelled looking down at him on the couch. "I'm back! Now. What'd you want to talk about?"

He looked at me inscrutably, like he had done something regretful. "Okay, so, when you guys left the club room... some stuff happened."

"Well I mean, of course something would happen! Everyone else was still there." I said oblivious to Ryan's obvious angst.

"I think Monika knows that I like her." He blurted out.

"Oh that's nice, you should totally tell her then. I'll be with you if you want. Let's do it… say tomorrow?"

"No, I can't do it when you are there. It's too embarrassing."

"What's embarrassing about love!?" I walked over to him and shook him around, "it's fucking glorious. DO IT!"

"Uhhh… are you okay Gaje? What happened between you leaving the club and now?"

"Nothing much, I was in my room thinking about Natsuki's poem, then I angrily stormed down here and screamed. I walked outside and I met you at the sidewalk after leaving. Then, I went to Sayori's place and told her that I liked her then I came back here and now we're talking."

"Wait…. You told Sayori?"

"Oh yeah, there was a couple times where I was really teetering on the edge. I felt like I was a passenger of the Titanic, but in the end I told her and she said she liked me back and now I'm here."

"I'm proud of you Gaje... you finally did it."

"Haha, yeah I did. Now shut up and stand up, it's your turn and we must prepare you!"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

I held my hand up and pulled a suit out from thin air. "Stand up. Now!"

"Okay, what are you planning?"

"Less talking and more action!" I started putting the suit on, sliding my hands through the sleeves. The suit was something I created from my mind, with a little help from TV shows. It would turn me into anyone I could think of. And for this one I just so happened to choose…

"It's me, Monika!" I said holding my arms out wide.

"Oh my god Gaje. What... why!?"

"Shhh… it is time! I want you to tell me, Monika, that you like me."

"I can't do that, I know it's you Gaje. Goddammit Gaje, this is too weird."

I tried my best to imitate Monika's personality, blinking dreamily and giving an angelic smile. "But, I thought you liked me Ryan-san."

"Gaje, I hope you die."

"So long as my love is strong I shall live forever, now! Say it!"

"I can't man, like, you're not Monika. This is too much."

I looked down at my chest, I could see my cleavage. I grinned and put my hands around my breasts and squeezed them together. "C'mon Ryan, are you saying that _these_ , aren't real."

"I'm going to kill you Gaje, just stop, c'mon man." Ryan buried his face into his hands, beads of sweat began trickling down his forehead.

"How are you supposed to tell her, when you can't even tell a dummy of her."

"Dude, I know it's you Gaje. God I have so many mixed feelings right now."

"Could it be? Does Ryan-kun have feelings for Gaje senpai!? You baka!"

"That's it, I'm going to sleep. I hope you fall down the stairs and die." Ryan began walking away towards the stairs.

"You don't want Monika joining you?" I said following him.

"STOP!"

He shut the door to his room and I burst out laughing, "Ryan, come back. I'm taking it off, Monika's gone!"

"Are you lying to me? Because I don't trust you."

I tried to contain my laughing for the moment, "I, haha, I'm not lying I assure you, come back out."

"I swear Gaje, if you're lying."

I heard him near the door, as he did so I pressed my chest against the door awaiting him to open it. He opened the door and was met by a full view of cleavage.

"Ta-da!"

He covered his face and walked away. He fell into his bed and let out a muffled, "WHYYYY!?"

I leaned against the wall laughing loudly, I started to tear up. I walked away to my room and took the suit off, still having little spurts of laughter. I turned over in my bed, still hysterical. My heart rate was through the roof, I coughed and closed my mouth, trying to contain myself. I cooled down and smirked at the roof. It was time to write my poem.

 _An angel of white, reflecting vibrant lights_

 _Whose deep blue eyes bless with eternal joy_

 _Whose beautiful skin bestows great might_

 _Whose hair soft and smooth makes me coy_

 _Even in the most mundane of talks_

 _Your mere presence brings upon tranquility_

 _Your very essence inspires during our walks_

 _Queens cannot compare to your nobility_

 _My love has been claimed_

 _By a goddess who deemed me worthy_

 _A goddess whose sincerity is famed_

 _I rush to your side I hurry_

 _Now hope for the future is clear_

 _Because you're by my side_

 _Sayori, my love, you're here._


	11. Spur of the Moment

I sat there, my face being smothered by the bed. "Why would he do that?" I turned over and sighed, "he's lucky I have to write a poem.

I pushed myself up and walked over to my desk. I looked at my notebook and popped the cap off my pen. Another day of excruciating difficulty figuring out what to write.

I opened the notebook to the first blank page available, though after a few minutes that became a common occurrence as I continuously tore out drafts.

Each time I felt myself getting slowly angrier, I didn't think writing was this difficult. I stabbed my pen into the paper out of anger, it bent the tip, effectively rendering it useless.

"Son of a..." I pushed the seat back and got up. I knocked on Gaje's door and waited outside.

"Hold on, gimme a second." He said. I could hear scuffing against the floor as he neared the doorway. The door clicked as he unlocked it, "yes?"

"I need your help." I said dejectedly. "Can you give me another pen?"

"What happened to the one I gave you? Wait, don't tell me, Yuri stole it."

"No Gaje... I, broke it."

His eyes widened as his face slack-jawed, "oh, I see. I didn't know you were into that stuff too."

"Sss... Goddammit, just give a damn pen Gaje."

He closed his eyes and did some over dramatic hand gestures and slowly pulled out a pen from his back pocket.

"Ta-da! And no... I didn't pull it out of my ass, but I'm not judging if you do."

I breathed angrily and snatched it out of his hand. "I- I'm not even- I'm done. See ya tomorrow."

I pulled the door closed and began walking back into my room, muttering quietly to myself.

"Don't be too loud!" He yelled.

I ignored him and closed my door, walking over to my desk. He really likes pushing the boundaries... he always has, why am I even mad?

I relaxed at my desk, "alright, let's try this again." I lifted my pen up and began writing once more. The pen wrote smoothly, it glided across the paper like a sword through water. After hours of complications and irritations I finally finished my poem. I felt accomplished.

 _I sit stranded, alone_

 _For reasons unknown_

 _Without my one_

 _The Moon to my Sun_

 _I saw a majestic light in the distance_

 _I floated to it and entered its force_

 _I found myself in another dimension_

 _That's when I saw the one_

 _Coral brown surface, emerald green craters,_

 _An angelic aura, and a beautiful presence_

 _My heart fluttered and froze at your sight_

 _A being such as I, had no business with your grace_

 _But you granted me friendship, with a loving face_

 _On that day I knew we would forever rotate around each other_

We became one singular gravitational force

I dropped the pen. "Finally... this is pretty good, I hope she'll like it. Will she even notice?" I flopped into my bed and closed my eyes embracing the warmth of my soft comforter.

"Ryan. How's it goin dude, wake up."

"Wha- is it time already?"

"Yeah dude, I'm making some gnarly breakfast dude."

I pressed my face into my pillow. "I'm going back to sleep."

"Nah dude, you do that, you'll wake up in the pool."

"Okay, fine. Give me a minute."

"Alright dude, peace." He walked out of the room and down the stairs.

I stared at the alarm clock on my table. Did I even sleep at all? I feel like I only blinked. I rolled out of bed and opened my closet. I grabbed my notebook and bag and walked downstairs where upon I saw Gaje; he was wearing an apron, a large chef hat, and a fake curled mustache. When he saw me come down, he held up his hand in an okay sign. "Ohn hon hon, oui oui Veulcom to my restorant."

I looked at him strangely, "we having some French cuisine today?"

"It's a spicy a meatball." He dropped the French accent and shook his head, "nah, I'm just making omelets with cheese."

I chuckled at a volume only I could hear, "and a large soda."

Realizing the mating call of the Big Smoke, Gaje retorted in his best impression. "OOOOOOOOOOOH"

"Can I have my omelet please?"

He flipped the pan, the omelet soared up and flopped back down. He slid it off the pan and placed it on a plate, then he chucked it in my direction. I flinched and brought my arms up, but slowly dropped my guard noticing the plate had not hit me. It in fact was floating before me, spinning around like a vinyl record.

"Bone app the teet."

"Thanks..." I grabbed the disk and sat at the couch, munching down on the omelet.

"Oui oui!" He yelled.

"So, this is French?"

He snapped his fingers, a French flag came out of nowhere and skewered the meal. "Oui oui."

As I cleared the plate Gaje began walking towards the living room, balancing his spinning plate on one finger, like a basketball. "In Italy we learned this move making pizza, no?"

"Italy? I thought you were doing a French thing."

"Ah, yes, oui oui, I know that, yes?"

"No."

"Oui oui..." He said sadly, moping about.

I walked back to the living room and sat on the couch, arm sprawled over the armrest. I looked at my phone, it was only 7:10 so we had a few minutes before we left. I walked back upstairs and brushed my teeth. As I came back down I saw Gaje waiting by the door. "Well, I'm waiting." He said with his hands on his hips.

"I'm coming, hold on."

I picked my bag up from the side of the couch and walked towards him, he opened the door for us and we both left. We stopped just outside of Sayori's house. Gaje was slightly bobbing his head, staring into the ground.

Sayori emerged out of her yard, "Hi Ryan. H-hi Gaje." She blushed ever so slightly and sauntered over to his side.

On that day I knew, I was going to become the third wheel.

"Hey Sayori." I said.

Gaje smiled in her direction, "mornin' Sayori."

Per the norm, we began making our way through the neighborhood. I glanced over at Gaje and Sayori, they were holding each others hands. "Get a room."

Gaje's eyes darted to me, brows raised. He began speaking into my mind, _"we might get a room eventually. Wink wink."_

He stopped talking into my head and spoke out loud, "shut up Ryan."

"F-forget I even said anything." I looked back to the sidewalk.

As we entered the courtyard of the school Gaje walked in front of us and rushed over to the front door. He opened it, allowing us entrance to the school.

"Thanks." Sayori and I both said.

Gaje unfortunately got stuck holding the door open for a lot more than he bargained for. Sayori and I patiently waited on the other side by the lockers. He finally entered the school and resumed holding Sayori's hands.

"I'll catch up with you later Ryan, I'm gonna walk Sayori to her class."

"Okay."

"Bye Ryan!" Sayori bent down and waved.

"See you two lovebirds later."

I walked into English with a nice surprise, Monika was there before me. I smiled slightly to myself as I took my seat.

We turned to each other. "Morning Ryan."

"Hey Monika, how's it going?"

"Good, and you?"

"I'm doing well, thanks for asking."

She shifted around in her seat, popping off the cap from her pen. "So I assume you heard the news with Gaje and Sayori right?"

"Yeah he told me right after he told her. He seemed really happy, they're all over each other now."

"Yeah? Must be nice, from what Sayori told me, she's liked him for the longest time."

"Ahem. Monika, Ryan, do you have something you wish to discuss with the class?" Mr. Dire was staring us down like we were death row inmates.

"S-sorry Mr. Dire." Monika said, smiling innocently.

"Yeah... sorry." I said.

Mr. Dire leisurely turned to the board in a quick twirl, lifting up his chalk to the wall. As he began tapping and scrawling chalk against it he opened the English textbook. "Today... we are going to be learning, about the Romantic Period, which took place during the late 1700s and ended around the late 1800s."

As Mr. Dire spoke, it was evident Monika was quite intrigued about the subject. She had her eyes glued to the board where he had written a large scale timeline, labeled with names of famous people and pieces of music. I looked over to her notebook, she had laid out a perfect replica of the notes, it was pristine and neat throughout. I started doing notes exactly as she did, glancing between her notebook and mine.

"Having trouble seeing the board Ryan?"

"Ah, yeah, I can't see that well without my glasses, I need to get a new pair."

"Here." She pushed her notebook over and let me grab it. I laid it out beside my notebook and began copying it all down.

"Your notes are really neat, I try to keep mine clean, but they always end all over the place."

She looked at my notebook and giggled, "looks like it."

I finished the time table and handed it back to her, "thanks."

"No problem Ryan."

She closed the notebook and pulled out one of her textbooks, we were supposed to read the remaining chapter that Mr. Dire had left off.

"Hey, I was wondering, since Gaje and Sayori are kind of an item, do you think they'll tell the others?" Monika stroked her hand through her ponytail.

"Well... maybe. I don't know honestly, it depends how Gaje feels about it."

"Knowing Sayori, she might not wait, she might've already told Yuri and Natsuki... speaking of Yuri, is Gaje out there with her right now?"

I raised my head, allowing sight of the courtyard. Sure enough, "yeah, Yuri and Gaje are out there, though it looks like Gaje is just ignoring her, he's on his phone."

Monika nodded to herself, "well, if you got the girl of your dreams, would you really care about anything else?"

"I wouldn't ignore my friend still..."

"Well you only looked for a second, maybe he isn't anymore."

"I guess you're right." I looked over to her, she was staring directly at her phone screen.

"Oh, did you say something. Sorry." She replied, giggling softly.

I rolled my eyes and smiled a bit, "I see how it is."

"I was just checking the time, promise."

The bell rung out, demanding our exit. All the students rose and we collectively exited the room. Monika and I walked side by side to Chemistry class. As I took my seat I noticed something that would be explained later on. The board had written on it, "Love in Brain."

Ms. Kiri, who was already trembling due to her age stumbled to the front of the room, with a piece of paper in hand. "Alright everybody, today's assignment will be about... about... I forgot." She turned to her desk, her head rotated like she was a robot. She picked up a copy of the paper she had already been holding and placed it over the other copy. "Ah yes, we're learning about the chemicals produced in the brain during love."

I really felt like Ms. Kiri had some sort of far gone dementia. This was indeed Gaje's work, the characters of this world all were.

"That is all, please get to work." She walked out of the door, leaving me confused.

All the other students were used to Ms. Kiri's insanity, they brushed it off as normal and just started going to work. I looked over to Monika slack jawed, "w-what's happening?"

"You know how Ms. Kiri is, it's just the way she works... Honestly I don't know how she's still working here."

I looked down at the paper she had passed down the rows, it was a large picture of a brain. There was a key map in the bottom left that had colors labeled for specific chemicals.

"Why are we learning this? I don't know anything about chemistry..." I moaned.

"Well, I'd say to be worried, but... Ms. Kiri doesn't even grade the work she gives." Monika folded up the work and slipped it into a blue folder. "I'll just keep this one with all the others."

"Does she always give such weird assignments? Where I was from we only did lab experiments."

"That sounds exciting. And yes, she sadly does... Though, the assignments are usually quite informative, I've finished all the work given, but it's not like I get a grade for them."

I nodded and turned back to my desk, staring at the beige top. My eyes felt kind of I drifted off a loud shriek brought me back to my senses.

"Wah! Gaje!?"

I moved my head to the side, getting a better view of outside through the door's glass pane. I could see Gaje, he was holding Sayori in the air. He was spinning around and laughing as he did so.

I didn't know he was the romantic type. Well, I mean he writes poems, so.

Monika, curious, also looked out the window. "Aww... how adorable."

"Yeah... looks like they're having a fun time." I said.

"Yeah." She looked at them longingly, seemingly jealous of their situation.

Gaje eventually let her down and dragged her away, their shoes squeaking against the freshly waxed floor.

I turned to Monika, with a sudden question. "Hey Monika, why'd you start up the Literature Club?"

"That's a bit out of nowhere."

"Yeah, I've wanted to ask, but never had the time."

"Well, I was at one point the president of the Debate Club, but it was all just politics and budget stuff. I didn't really enjoy my time there. I started the club for two main reason: doing something that no one in school had done, and to have fun with people I could call friends." She seemed like she wanted to say more, but she stopped.

"I get where you're coming from, I don't really like talking about serious things. All it's done for me is hurt people and separate my friends and family. I like having a place where people can get along, and I found it in the club. I admire you for it Monika."

Her rosy cheeks lifted with her angelic smile, "thanks Ryan, I'm glad that you've found a place with us."

The door creaked open, everyone looked to the doorway. Ms. Kiri struggled to walk in, but she somehow managed. Once again she got up before us, "hello class, today we're doing an assignment over the chemicals in the brain produced during love." She walked over to the desk and grabbed another stack of the assignment and handed them out once more. I was going to say something, but no one else did so I kept my mouth shut.

After we had all gotten copy number 2, she walked to her desk and smiled gleefully at all of us. A few minutes passed by and she began slowly drifting off, her eyelids kept closing for longer and longer, til she finally passed out.

The bell rang at the same time her nap time did. Everyone swiftly got up and left the room. As Monika and I neared the door I looked down to Ms. Kiri, concerned. "Is-is she dead?" I asked, followed by the sound of her snoring. "Never mind."

We closed the door quietly, as to not disturb her and walked to the cafeteria. Halfway there I felt myself get excited. "I love lunch, it's my favorite class!"

Monika raised a brow at me, "that's not a class Ryan."

"Well, in my book it is. And I happen to have an a in it."

"Oh really, I'm sure that'll help with your record, especially rising your GPA."

"Hey, English is hard okay?"

"I'll help you, don't worry too much Ryan."

We passed through the double doors to the lunchroom, Monika and I both waited in line together. After we both paid Monika separated from me. She usually ate lunch with the girls, I wanted to join, but apparently it was girls only.

Natsuki's voice echoed in my mind as I thought about it. "No boys allowed!"

 _Yeah, that's probably how it went down._

I walked out to the court yard with reluctance, I was still ticked off at what he did to me yesterday.

"Ah Ryan, there you are." Gaje was glancing over in my direction, he lurched over the back of the bench, half of his body hanging down.

I spoke slowly and meticulously, "well, well, well, if it isn't, Gaje Laqor. I'm still mad at your for yesterday's conundrum."

He squinted his eyes and pursed his lips, "what?"

"Don't you remember what you did?" I asked going back to my normal speech pattern.

"Yeah, I was helping you."

"By fondling Monika's breasts? What if I fondled Sayori's."

"First of all, I know you never would. Second, you'd be fucking dead."

"Exactly. Now you understand!"

He closed his eyes and shrugged, "I don't see the correlation."

"And that's why I'm mad."

He smirked at me, "you don't look very mad.

"Well that's because so far, I've been enjoying my day with Monika."

"Ah... good to see my romance theme for the day is working."

"I hate you so much."

He lowered himself onto the bench, slouched to the point of almost falling off. "So, anything happen?"

"No, we just talked."

With spunk in his movements he rose up once more, "there's still time!"

"No, I'm done talking with you, I'm gonna eat."

"Sit here, next to me." He patted the bench.

"I don't wanna."

"Suit yourself." He said with a smug frown.

I walked over under the cherry blossom tree and began eating in the shade.

 _ **Snap**_.

The shade deteriorated, replaced by the scalding beam of the sun. "C'mon Gaje, why'd you get rid of the tree?"

"It'll come back after you leave, don't worry."

I mumbled inaudibly to myself and munched down on my meal in the heat. I looked through the window to my left, into the cafeteria. I saw all the girls eating together, they were all laughs and smiles. Sayori was laughing, but not looking at the others. She was glued to her cellphone. I looked over to Gaje, who was doing the same.

They really are infatuated with each other... At least Gaje is happy, so I won't have to worry too much about him teasing, but Monika? She hasn't teased me that much today though.

I met up with Monika once again as lunch ended. We continued through the day, dealing with the final tribulations of Gaje's love classes. I honestly didn't know math could even relate to love. As the final class ended Monika and I made our way to the club room.

"Class today has been... interesting, to say the least."

"Yeah, strange coincidence that every class today involved romance."

* * *

The bell rung out through the courtyard.

"Well, I'll see you at the club Gaje. I'll have to find another book for next time." Yuri said as she stood.

"Yeah, that one was really good. I'll see you then."

Yuri walked through the door, leaving me alone in the peaceful outdoors. I crossed my legs and began humming along to a song whose name I didn't know. I looked up at the windows from the classes above. The art room was the biggest of them all. It was also the class Sayori was currently in.

I lost myself in thought, I stood up with a erratic idea in mind, and walked into the building. I knocked on the art room door and waited for someone to answer. It clicked open. "Hello?"

I looked up, it was the art teacher, Ms. Soren. "Oh, hello Ms. Soren, I'm here to get Sayori."

"And what is this concerning?"

I pulled out a slip of paper, I had forged it as I was walking to the room.

"Ah, one moment please."

She walked back into the class and tapped on Sayori's shoulder. She grabbed her bag from underneath the table and started strolling out.

I waited for her to come out and I grabbed her by surprise. I lifted her up into the air.

"Wah! Gaje!?" She shrieked.

I laughed and kept twirling. I slowed down and slowly lowered her to the ground.

"W-what are you doing here? D-don't you have class too?"

"No." I lied.

"Are you skipping..?"

"No."

"Gaje... we talked about this, I really want you to succeed. Don't you?"

"Sayori it's fine, I have 100s in all my classes still, I get my work done."

"You swear?"

I pressed my hand against my chest and closed my eyes, "cross my heart..."

"Okay..."

I grabbed her hand, gently taking a hold, "okay, c'mon!"

"B-wait, I have to go to the office!"

"Why?"

"That's what Ms. Soren told me."

"Oh... no, that was a lie... I, uh kind of forged that slip."

"What!?"

"Yes."

"Gaje!"

"Sayori, c'mon, you gotta live life!"

"You're gonna get in trouble Gaje."

I placed my hand over her forehead and pushed her hair up, looking her in the eyes. "Sayori, I swear, it'll all be okay."

"Okay... but why in art class, I love drawing."

"It was spur of the moment! Now let's go!" I tugged her along, running down the hallway and out to the front of the school.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"There's this really nice place that I found yesterday, it's beautiful."

I looked out for anybody in the front, the coast was clear. I lead her down the sidewalk, until we neared a fork in the road that lead into a forest area. We walked down the dirt path into the woods eventually nearing a small archway of roots. We hunched down and walked through it, leading to a beautiful hand crafted scenery.

Rows of multicolored tulips graced the bright green grass, shone on by speckles of light that had pierced the canopy of the trees above. Sayori looked around in awe, making me giddy and excited.

"This is amazing..." She leaned down and stared at the tulips.

I was glad that somebody else appreciated beautiful places like this.

"It's beautiful right?" I asked.

She nodded and looked back to the plants. "How did you find this place?"

"I came across it randomly one day, I think someone made it though, there's no way the plants all got this way alone."

She stood up and looked over at the other side of the area, there was a large tree stump. "Gaje, come over here!" She walked over and took a seat on the tree stump and slapped her hand down on the other side.

I walked over with her and sat down as well. I dug my hand into my pocket and grabbed my phone. "Sayori, say cheese!" I held the phone up and snapped a photo. Sayori unsuspecting, made a quiet, "huh?"

I lowered the phone and looked at the picture I had just taken. "Pfft, this is perfect." I had caught Sayori mid blink, she looked like she had just woken up.

Sayori looked over my shoulder at the picture, "haha, I look like I just got out of bed."

"Let's take another." I said. "I want to get a better one."

Once more I took a picture.

"See you at the club Sayori." I said.

"See ya!"

I walked back into the courtyard, leaving her to go to lunch.

I slouched down on to the bench, but my attention was peaked by the opening of the doors behind me.

I looked over the back of the bench, "there you are."


	12. Pink Hair, Pink Cries

As the final bell rung I retreated into the school, making my way to Sayori's last class. She was up against the wall swinging her bag from side to side in front of her. I waved to her, grabbing her attention, she met me with open arms, wrapping them around me in an instant. I returned the embrace and rested my head atop hers. I sighed deeply, and nuzzled her. I let go and we began making our way to the club.

"Hey, do you think we should tell the others?" I asked.

"Sure!"

"How about we tell them at the festival?"

"Oooh! I like it, it'll make the day even better!"

I squeezed her hand lightly. "Just seeing you makes my day."

A fire of embarrassment immolated Sayori's cheeks as she hid her face.

I could feel my hand dampening over time as we walked down the hallway, I wanted to pull away and wipe my hands, but Sayori just gripped on tighter every time I tried. "Sayori, my hands getting a bit sweaty."

"I don't mind, don't let go, please."

"A-alright."

Still self-conscious, I started swaying my arm back and forth to catch little breezes between us. The halls had emptied a few moments before, so it was just us two. "How was the rest of your day?"

"It was hard... Mr. Fyron gave us a pop quiz in math... I think I failed."

"Why? Did you not understand the work?"

"No, I fell asleep..."

"Wait, then you definitely failed, haha."

"Meanie..."

I laid my head against her then moved around and planted a kiss on her forehead. "You'll be okay."

I was never the romantic type, but looking at Sayori always made me want to do the impossible. I wanted to cherish her, to always be the sunshine that drowns out her rain clouds.

I leaped ahead to grab the door and opened it for us both, as we walked in a familiar view greeted us. Ryan resting his head on the desk, Monika relaxing at her desk, and Yuri reading in the back like a recluse.

"Well, well, look who decided to show up." Ryan said not moving his body.

"Why would I miss the club?" I took my seat next to him and looked around us.

He stretched and yawned moderately loud. I watched him as he did so, waiting for a good time to engage in conversation. "So, how'd things go?"

"It was fine, not that your theme helped."

"Hmm, I guess I just wasted my powers then."

"What was I supposed to do!?"

I raised my brows and gave a mischievous grin, "oh, _you know_."

"What? I don't understand." Ryan truly looked puzzled, but I ignored his confusion.

"Hopeless." I said as I rose up.

Ryan furrowed his brows as he looked down to the table, head in his hands. "W-what?"

I lurched over to Monika, resting against the side of her desk. "Hey Monika, what's on the agenda?"

"Oh, hey Gaje, nothing much, we're just sharing poems and then straight into our festival preparations."

I tapped the desk several times, then knocked, "alright well, I'ma go sit down then."

"Okay, we'll be starting soon!"

I made a click noise with my mouth and turned to walk away, as I did so I caught wind of Natsuki peering at me from out of the closet. She had her lips out in a sullen pout, her eyes were darker than usual. Seeing me walk towards her she withdrew from the doors, turning to face the bookshelf.

"Hey Nat."

She answered back slowly, in an uncharacteristically quiet voice, "h-hi Gaje..."

I was expecting her to give me another one of her marshmallow-esque punches, but she seemed to not care. She turned, holding her other arm. "How's it goin? Doin' well?"

"Y-yeah! I- _gurgle_." Her stomach betrayed her, revealing her hunger.

I looked down at her stomach then back to her, the embarrassment across her face was comparable to having someone walk in on you naked. I raised my finger and stopped her from responding, "hold on Nat, stay here, I'll be right back."

She looked back to me as I was about to leave, "w-where would I ev-"

I walked out of the closet and moseyed over to my backpack, kneeling over and unzipping the top. I grabbed a box out of it that I had prepared, but decided not to eat at lunch. It was still warm. I slipped it under my fest, creating a noticeable bulge, but no one was looking at me. I opened the closet door and struggled to take the box back out, the clothing was skin tight at that point.

"Here Natsuki." I held out the box, it was pink with a blue lid.

"H-how'd you get this?" She grabbed it and opened the box, it was full of shrimp and rice, and it had a set of chopsticks on top of it.

"I didn't feel like eating my lunch today and I had a big dinner, so, you can have it."

"T-thanks..." She plopped down against the wall, and began picking at the shrimp.

"Well eat quickly, we're sharing soon." I closed the doors and walked back to my seat. I leaned over to Ryan, "Ryan, _chortle_ , Ryan."

"What?" He curiously eyed me.

"I just gave Natsuki some food, hashtag feed the nee- _haha-_ dy." I said, trying to keep myself from laughing uncontrollably. Sure, it was a rather dark joke, but that's all it was, a joke.

"Jesus Christ Gaje, what is wrong with you?"

I shrugged and leaned back in my chair, "what? I'm not wrong."

He scoffed, "are you going to feed me too? I'm pretty hungry, and in need of food."

"I'm sure you can wait for us to get back home, we actually _have_ food."

Ryan rolled his eyes and pressed his forehead to the desk.

"Are you going to sleep?" I asked. "We're sharing in a couple of minutes."

I saw his skin press-up on the side of his skull, presumably him widening his hidden eyes. "Wait. I forgot, I have to share my poem with Monika still."

I nodded, "yeah, yeah you do... speaking of which, I should probably edit mine real quick, we decided not to tell everyone yet."

"Okay everyone! Time to share poems!"

As I wrote down the edited poem I turned to Ryan, "you're up lover boy."

"Shut up Gaje."

I made a childish display, pinching my fingers together on both hands and smushing them together, making smoochy sounds. "Have fun." I said as I began walking over to Yuri.

Yuri took my poem up, her expressionless face always made me stand worriedly, I had no idea what she was thinking.

"Is this about Sayori?"

"Yes."

"I didn't expect you to be so forward... but, do you think she'll notice?"

"Eh, probably not this version, but come the festival she will."

"Oh, y-you're going to confess during our performance? That's quite brave of you."

 _I guess it's still technically a confession..._

"Ugh, yeah I am, it still makes my stomach churn every time I think about it."

"S-sorry..."

"It's not your fault."

After reading Yuri's poem I made my move to the closet. I knocked on the door, "Natsuki? Are you okay in there?"

I was met by a muffled response, "yeth!"

I opened the closet doors to the aftermath of a rice-nado. Her face was speckled with sprinkles of the grain and her cheeks were bigger than a squirrel.

"Well, I'm glad you managed to keep everything clean." I said looking down around her.

She swallowed harshly, "I was hungry! Wasn't exactly concerned with making a mess."

"Yeah, I can see that."

She covered the box back up and handed it to me. "Here... thanks again."

I slipped it under my vest. "Yeah no prob. Oh yeah." I handed her my poem.

She took it eagerly, a bright grin stretched across her face. As she moved her eyes down from line to line, I could see her getting frustrated. "Seriously... you and Yuri I swear!"

"Me and Yuri what?"

"All the unnecessary words, the complicated sentence structure, why can't you guys ever just make it simple?"

"Cause I didn't wanna, how bout that?"

"Blah, blah, blah."

"Just, give me your damned poem."

She rolled her eyes, handing me the raggedy sheet of paper she had set down on the shelf. I picked up the paper and straightened it out. I looked over it quickly and used my opportunity to get back at her. "Yawn!"

She broke out in rage, "it's better than yours!"

"I think that's up to the viewer."

"Yeah and the viewer says theirs is better!"

I squinted my eyes at her, "hmm... touché." I handed the paper back to her. "I'ma go share with the others now." I went to leave, but I was stopped by her grip.

"W-wait!"

I whirled my head to the side, "what?"

She was biting down on her bottom lip and twiddling her thumbs. Her eyes were facing the floor. "C-can I tell you something?"

"Shoot."

"I... I like you!"

I felt nothing at that moment, it was like everything had slowed down to a halt. I swallowed and opened my mouth to speak, but closed it again when I realized, I had no response. I wiped my eyes, "what..?"

"I have feelings for you!"

"Yeah, no, I heard you..." I bit down on the side of my thumb, digging into the skin. "But... why?"

"Y-you're the only one who listens..."

I pointed towards the wall, where everyone I remembered was. "But what about them?"

"They listen... but, you. You're the only one who tells me like it is, you're serious with me."

I covered up half of my face with my hand, slowly sliding it down, pulling my skin down with it. "But whyyyy?"

She didn't grant me an answer, instead she gave me the ultimate question, the question I had hoped she wouldn't ask. "D-do you... feel the same?"

"No... I, I don't Natsuki, I'm sorry."

Her lips quivered slightly, but she quickly bit down stopping it. "You actually thought I was serious? Hah! In your dreams, why would I ever like you."

"Natsuki..." I knew she was lying through her teeth. She was sticking to her tsundere ways all the way.

"Gee, you really are gullible Gaje." She pushed her hair with a flick of her hand and laughed.

"Natsuki, you were being serious."

"Pfft as if."

I sighed and opened the closet doors, leaving her to ferment in her false bravado. "Alright Natsuki, I'm gonna go.

"Bye." She said in a snubbed tone.

I shook my head in disbelief, "this is fucked." I lowered myself into the seat beside Ryan and leaned back.

"What happened to you?" Ryan asked.

I sighed out loudly, "oh nothing, Natsuki just confessed to me, it's all chipper, y'know."

Ryan's face lit up in realization. "Oh, my god. I forgot to tell you about that!"

"W-w-w-wait? You knew?" I closed my eyes and dropped my face to the desk, making an audible crash. I could feel the eyes from the others on me.

"Well what happened?" Ryan asked.

"Nothing. She told me, I said I didn't like her that way, and she tried to play it off as a joke." Recalling it just made me angry, I buried my face in the desk. "Why did she have to do that now?"

"Let me talk to her." He said, as he stood.

"Go for it…" I responded, raising my head to see him.

* * *

I could see the closet doors were slightly cracked, so I just lightly pulled on them. As they cleared my path I noticed that the floor was covered in rice. "Hey Nat, you okay?"

"Y-yeah I'm fine! What's it to you?" She wiped her face with her sleeve as she faced the bookshelf.

"Well, I just wanted to talk to you… about, stuff."

She faced me, "stuff? You better not be here to grovel for advice with Monika."

I recoiled, frowning a bit at her comment. "No, Nat, not about that."

"What do you want then, and hurry it up, I still have to share with the others."

I closed the doors dimming the room. "I wanted to talk about what happened with you and Gaje."

"Figures he'd tell you… Like I told him, it was a joke!"

"Remember yesterday you told me you did like him."

Her face betrayed her cocky attitude, her eyes broadened, and a nervous smile slapped across her face. "T-that was all just a joke… I-I swear, heh…"

"C'mon Nat, it's alright, you can talk to me."

"Ryan I honestly have no clue what you mean. Now if you're done questioning me." She held out her poem.

I rolled my eyes and snatched the paper from her, "look Nat, I'll read your poem, but we still need to talk about this." I eyed her as I held the poem against my chest. She didn't budge, still clinging to her innocence.

"We can talk, but it won't change the fact that, _I, was, joking_!" She bent over and poked me in the chest in rhythm with the last three words.

"Look I understand how you're feeling right now, the best thing to do is talk about it rather than let it bottle up."

"Just read the damn poem." She said crossing her arms.

"Alright, fine."

I lifted the paper to my eyesight, it was something about giraffes and elephants. I didn't really care to find the true meaning. Natsuki's poems were cutesy and had pretty obvious messages, but I was more concerned about her state of mind than her poetry skills at this point.

"I liked it, it was short and sweet Nat, good job."

"I don't need your praise Ryan, I know it's good. Now give me yours, I bet it won't be anywhere near as good as mine though." Her cocky grin sparked a fire in my eyes, not of anger or frustration, but determination. Determination to wipe that smirk off of her face.

"Okay. But! After the poem we're talking about you know what."

"Yeah, yeah, you already said that."

I took out the folded poem from my pocket and handed it to her, she unfolded it carelessly, nearly tearing it. Her cocky expression wasn't there for much longer though. Throughout her reading I could see her getting more and more frustrated, she wasn't a fan of "complicated," writing.

"I swear, it was bad enough with Yuri, and then Gaje… but, now you!? I hate this stuff, why don't you guys just write it simply!?" She pressed the paper into my chest, knocking the little bit of air I was breathing in out of me.

"Yeah, well, I'm trying to impress Monika so, I tried hard on it."

"Talk about sappy."

"Shut up Nat."

"What have I said about calling me, Nat!?" She furrowed her brows with a fury filled flare.

"But Nat sounds nice… and cute." I said teasingly.

I knew I had touched a nerve, her eye seemed to twitch slightly and her nose crinkled in anger as she opened her mouth, "I. Am. Not. CUTE!" She swayed her arms in the air, a barrage of fists came propelling at my face.

"Wait Nat, calm down. I'm sorry."

Her windmill styled arm spins slowed to a halt. "You'd better be sorry. Keep that in mind next time you want to say something smart!"

"Alright, can we just talk now. Please?"

"You drop the Nat, business and maybe I'll talk."

"Alright, Natsuki."

She looked at me annoyed, hands propped against her hips, "well?"

"Look Nat-I mean, Natsuki, what happened between you and Gaje, I-"

"It's not gonna change anything, like I told you. It was a jo-"

"I know it's not a joke, I'm not that stupid."

"So you admit that you are stupid."

"Not all the time, but this is important." I paused for a moment, trying to figure out the proper way to say what I wanted to say, without angering her in some way. "I know what you're feeling right now and I know it hurts. I do the same thing, I'll bottle up my emotions for a while til I can't take it anymore and explode. It's best to talk about it so you don't end up hurting yourself."

"You? Explode? I don't see it."

"Yea, I don't like taking my anger out on people. I try to make it look like I'm fine to not bother anyone but it does catch up to me. Look, I just want you to feel better."

"I-ugh… why'd you have to make it all mushy. I don't want to talk about it…"

"I know it can be hard but it is fine, tell me."

"I know Ryan… it's just-just…" Her eyes misted over, tears began forming, slowly seeping from her tear ducts. She brought her hands to her face covering up, "why does it… why does it hurt?"

I reached out my arm and pulled her in, embracing her in a snug hug. I could feel her weeping softly into the dip between my shoulder and neck. Wheezing and sniffles had become the chorus in her song of pain.

"It's alright, just let it all out."

"Sh-shut up R-Rya-wahh!"

Her cries of pain only deepened my own feelings of pity. She gripped my clothes tighter, causing them to constrict my body. Her hands were slightly trembling. I let her cry, only moving my hands to lightly pat her back. I whispered quietly, "it's okay…"

After a short moment she lessened her grip and pulled back.

"Feeling better?" I asked looking down at her miserable expression.

Her grip loosened, her eyes were bloodshot, she looked up at me with her darkened eyes, "n-no!" She dropped her head into my chest, sobbing even more.

I sighed, "it's alright Nat..."

She sniffed in deeply, pulling mucus back to its base of operation. "Th- thank you Ryan. I-I'm okay now." She was still having trouble breathing normally, the occasional gasp for air sneaking through. She wiped her face with her sleeves, small globs of snot and tears smearing against the clothing. It was not a pretty sight to say the least.

She held a broken smile, looking up at me with some sort of false bravado. She looked down and then back up in an instant. "Okay! I'm not giving up! I'll convince him somehow." Natsuki raised her fist in the air, "I got this." She looked to me and pointed to the door, "okay Ryan, you can go now, I have to start thinking of a plan. Thanks again for the talk!" She propped open the doors and gestured for me to exit.

I was at a loss for words, I was so confused. She pushed me out and closed the doors behind me. I just blinked slowly, "wait… what?" I looked up from the floor, Gaje was standing beside Monika, he had his head cocked to the side, looking down at the table. He grabbed the corner of his paper and began walking over to Sayori, his somber eyes brightening up almost instantaneously. He noticed me looking his way. I gave him a nod, stealing Natsuki's false confidence.

I turned to see Monika sporting her trademark angelic smile, beckoning me to come over. I hesitantly walked up to her side and looked awkwardly at the desk.

"Are you going to show me your poem?" She said moving her face into my vision. She had her hand cradling the bottom of her chin.

My face flared up at her sudden appearance. "I- yeah. H-here's my poem, I hope you like it. I-I really worked hard on it."

Monika took the poem up from my hand, she looked very intrigued. She had seen me look nervous before, but this was different. Her eyes were trained on the paper she was a dog staring down another dog.

"I see you took a note from Gaje, you both writing about love and all."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Well, in any case it's really good." She passed it back to me.

"Do you… know who it's… about?"

"Not a clue."

"Oh, uh… n-"

"Wait don't tell me let me guess!" She stopped me, she pressed her index finger against her lips as she began to delve into deep thought. She had an intense look in her eyes that she still managed to make look beautiful.

"Hmm… is it about, Ms. Heather?"

 _The history teacher?_

"What? N-no, not her."

"You've really come at me with a puzzling riddle Ryan…"

"It's closer than you think." I said laughing inside, it was a phrase Gaje had used during one of his random trivia questions a while back.

"Closer, hmm." She scanned the room. "It's Gaje!"

"Trust me, it's not Gaje. _Maybe_ they're even closer than you think."

"Are you sure it's not Gaje? You guys seem really close for people who've only known each other for two days."

"Trust me, I am absolutely, positively, 100 percent, sure, it's not Gaje."

"If it's not Gaje, _gasp,_ is it Yuri?"

"You want me to say it don't you?"

"I have no idea what you mean Ryan."

I sighed, "well, the poem… is about… you." My mind, my body, every inch of me, screamed run. But, my legs were frozen, leaving me to face Monika's brutal teasing. I closed my eyes in preparation for the worst.

"I knew that."

I slowly opened my eyes, her face was just inches away from mine. She was wearing a devious grin, I pulled back out of reflex making her giggle.

"Why didn't you just say that in the first place? I don't bite."

"It's not easy okay. I just get, you know… flustered when I try to say it."

Monika looked over where Gaje was sitting, "did Gaje put you up to this?"

"No, he didn't it kinda just happened."

"Well I'm proud of you for taking the initiative, who knows, It might've just earned you some points." She smirked at me, filling my head with even more confusion.

"I… uh… points?"

"You know, like one of those dating games. We're probably somewhere between friend and best friends. Who knows, with a couple more of these who knows where you might get."

My heart jumped with joy, I couldn't believe what I had just heard. I was just ecstatic, like my head was about to explode. It all seemed outlandish, but I didn't care, I was on cloud nine.

Monika could see the joy in my face, she leaned in her lips were against my ear, "try your best." She pulled back and looked down at her phone, she pouted, "aww, I don't have time to show you mine."

I looked back to everyone else, Gaje was looking a bit antsy. I walked over to my seat and clasped my hands together. My was face covered in sweat, I raised my hands to my eyes covering my vision.

"Okay everyone." Monika announced, "now that we've all finished up, I'm glad to say that Sayori and I have finished our preparation ideas."

Sayori turned to us with a triumphant smile.

"So let me start out by saying, me and Sayori are going to be doing pamphlets for the festival. Now, we've set out a list of tasks for you guys to do, starting with Natsuki." She looked over to the closet, Natsuki was leaning against the doors. "We're going to need a lot of cupcakes to pass out during our performance."

"You got it! I'll make them so good they'll pass out from the deliciousness."

Monika laughed nervously, "try to keep them awake Natsuki."

She turned her attention to Yuri. "Yuri, I need you to make a poster for the outside wall and the inside." She looked Gaje and I up and down, "and you two…" She started flipping through papers on the podium. "You two, can you work with Yuri and Natsuki?"

Gaje spoke before me, he seemed to have totally forgotten what he had done earlier. "Yeah sure."

"Uhh… Sure." I said, still in shock from the previous conversation.

"Okay great! That's all the time we have for today, so I guess when you figure out all the semantics you're free to go!"

Gaje wasted no time, grabbing his backpack and standing. He walked over to Sayori's side and looked to me, "are you gonna stay here again Ryan?"

"Don't you need to get Yuri and Natsuki's phone number?" Sayori interjected.

"You have their numbers right?" He asked.

"Yeah." She nodded.

"Can you text them to me later?"

"Oh yeah! Sure!"

Gaje, smiling, turned back to me, "so you coming Ryan?"

"Wait how are we going to figure out who we're working with?"

"We can figure that out later today… or if you're going to stay you can figure it out."

I groaned, "yeah I guess… you guys just go on ahead I'm going to need some time to think."

"Alright, see you later. Let's go Sayori."

The pair walked out of the doors quickly, as soon as the door shut I saw him pull her closer. I looked over to where Yuri was, she was organizing her bag.

 _We've never really talked, with everything going on I haven't been able to. I think it would be better if I worked with Natsuki, especially since she has that new goal and all._

I got up from the desk and entered the closet. "Hey Nat, we're going to work together on the weekend, is that okay with you?"

"Yeah sure. A-are we working at Gaje's place?"

"Yeah, we will be."

"Perfect! I have to think of a way to get him alone."

"I'm pretty sure Gaje won't leave his room since he's going to be working with Yuri."

Natsuki's face flared up, "Gaje and Yuri are going to b-be in his room… alone?"

"I'd assume so."

"You don't think they'll, you know, do something!?"

"C'mon Nat, don't think like that."

"You were thinking it too, don't lie."

"I wasn't the one who thought of it first. You baka, thinking dirty things."

She blushed even harder, "grkk! Shut up. Here!" She held out her phone, her phone number was front and center. I grabbed the phone and pulled out mine and began typing down the digits. I accidentally hit the home button on her phone as I went to pass it back. But I was caught off guard by her background. It was a photo of Gaje, passed out on the courtyard bench. I looked up at her in surprise. "Huh, nice picture Nat."

She curiously looked at the screen, her eyes widened as she realized what I was speaking about. She snatched the phone away with zero hesitation, "don't tell him! I-I, just thought he looked cute. I mean! I-I-uh I hate you!" She slammed the doors on my face, leaving me standing there confused.

 _What the hell just happened?_


	13. The First Move

Sayori and I walked out of the club room together, leaving Ryan behind. She grabbed ahold of my arm and wrapped hers around mine. The warmth from her grip made me melt inside. I wanted to just nuzzle my head onto her shoulders. I looked over to her, she was smiling, but looking away from me. I guess she was still getting used to this. I had no idea what to say, I let the sound of us walking fill the gap. Though my ears soon began ringing from the silence between us. I compulsively I spit out the first thing that came to mind. "Chicken…"

"Huh?" She looked up at me."

I used her response as a chance to make small-talk, but the only thing I could think of was the festival preparations. "N-nothing… what's the pamphlet you're working on lookin like?"

Apparently that was the right thing to ask, because her eyes jolted from excitement. "It's so cool! Monika really outdid herself this time, there's a bunch of great decorations and stuff on the borders of the paper that make it really, _pop_!"

"Is it like a ballet recital pamphlet?"

"Huh?"

"Y'know where the names of the dances are labeled in order of showing? Kind of like that."

"Oh!" She lifted her hand, pointing her index out. "Yeah!"

"Hm! I'm sure with you and Monika it'll turn out fantastic."

I inched forward, just barely ahead of her to push open the door for us. I closed my left eye at the sight of the orange beating sun. I looked towards the ground as we began walking out of the school grounds. We walked through the concrete arches that lead into the school. We sat at the intersection, awaiting the little light box to change from a hand, to a walking person.

" **Wait. Wait. Wait.** " It constantly repeated. I quietly replicated the sound to myself, matching it's tone.

Nobody was around, no one ever seemed to be during the day time. There was the occasional car here and there, but for the most part the town was quiet and empty. Large fences covered up most residential areas so crime was also low, except for the occasional domestic dispute or public indecency issue. I was always curious to see someone randomly naked outside, but at the same time, now would not have been a good time for it to happen.

 _I must shield the Bun's innocence._

We walked around the corner, leading us to our neighborhood. I could tell, not only because our houses weren't far up ahead, but the sidewalk had a large red stripe across it right on the corner. "Oh, Sayori, I need Natsuki and Yuri's number for the weekend, I almost forgot."

I didn't really need them, but it would be kind of strange for me to just already have everyone's number. Yuri was the only exception, but no one except Ryan knew about that. And Sayori and me should have had each other's numbers considering how long we had been friends.

"I almost forgot too, good memory!" She moved her arm to her skirt pocket, something I never knew existed, and pulled out her phone. It was similar in size to an Iphone, but it was wider and pinker. She slid the screen up, bringing a list of contacts to the front. I overlooked and saw that she only had the others in her phone. She copied Yuri's, then Natsuki's number and pasted them into a message she had sent to me.

A little buzz shook my pocket and I checked it to see her message. "I got it, thanks."

"No prob! Don't forget to have fun on Sunday, especially with Yuri, she doesn't have much experience with hanging out with people."

"You're not jealous or anything, or like weirded out?"

She cocked her head to the side, "jealous? Weirded out? Why would I be any of that?"

 _This is Sayori, pure ball of innocence, remember that Gaje._

"I… don't know... Never mind. I got you."

"Okay!" She returned to her normal self, a cheerful outlook.

We both walked up to her door as I wanted to see her off. "Well, I'll text you." I said holding my phone up.

"Okay, I'm going to eat some ice cream!"

"What flavor?" I curiously asked.

"Oreo cookies and cream!"

"Oh… I love that one…" I said breathily. "I've got some of that at home too! I know what I'm eating… Well I'm off Sayori, see ya!"

"Bye!" She said closing the door softly.

I shoved my hands in my pockets and stood outside on the sidewalk for a moment, just staring around me. I had seen this view everyday, but it never ceased to amaze me that I was actually here. "This was the best choice."

I opened the door to the house, the television was on still. I walked over to it and shut it off, "I don't remember leaving this on, oops." I walked to the backyard and let Petey in, he was covered in flower petals and dirt.

"Jesus, Petey! Quit fucking up the rose bush!" I scowled at him.

He didn't care, his tongue was inflated and sticking out from the side of his mouth. He was panting loudly, slobber had begun to drip down from his exposed gums.

"Petey, shut your mouth, you're getting drool all over the place."

He started to walk away but I grabbed his collar and stopped him, "wait! Sit… sit!"

He only knew a few tricks, I had tried to teach more than just sit and up, but we ran out of dog treats and that was only way I knew how to teach dogs. He sat, looking up at me with a large grin. I picked off the petals that were stuck in his fur and scratched his back.

 ** _Snap._**

"There, now you can go lie down." I had cleaned him off fully, as well as the floor. I stretched my arms out wide, making an elongated grunt. I wandered into the fridge and grabbed a spoon, then popped a bowl of ice cream on the table beside me, same as Sayori, oreo cookies and cream. I took the bowl with me, eating little spoonfuls as I walked up to my room.

I crossed my leg over my knee as I lied back in my bed. I felt a buzz in my pocket as soon as I put the spoon in my mouth. I left it hanging out of my mouth and set the bowl aside to check the phone. It was Sayori, she sent me a picture of her holding the bowl of ice cream while she had the spoon lazily dangling from the corner of her mouth as well.

I sent back one of my own, replicating her picture, leaving a little message that said, "I told you I had it too!"

She responded a few seconds later with not a picture, but a little video. I hit play on it, she was sitting in her bed talking out loud. "Do you want to go on a date?"

I blinked, thinking I had misheard her. I replayed the video and sure enough, I wasn't hearing things. I sent back a video of my own, "I-I guess, uh, when and where? I honestly wasn't expecting you to make the first move, haha."

I put the phone down and stared at the screen, full of excitement, yet restraint. This was the first step of a relationship, dating. I wasn't experienced in any shape or way in this area, but then again neither was she. I looked away for a second to grab some more of the ice cream and the phone instantly buzzed. I stared at the message, it was directions to a place called, Extreme Ice. Curious, I clicked on the link, the phone flipped over to the map and calculated the distance and time of getting there. It was an ice skating place.

I messaged back, "oooh, looks like fun, sure, I love skating." Seeing that actually made me feel relieved, I used to skate a lot when I was younger. I was rusty, but I didn't lose the ability. I let the idea of skating toil in my mind, I started picturing more and more scenarios. Some were dark, I'm not going to lie, but most were romantic, loving, or even downright erotic. My favorite of them all was picturing us, 2 inches away from each other, her standing before me and vice versa. Our hands are locked together, and we're spinning around like some sort of human tornado. Of course, I didn't think this was practical and we'd most likely fall on our asses, but a boy can dream. I picked up the phone, "when do you want to go?"

She messaged back instantly, "I wanted to try maybe on Tuesday, but I wasn't sure if you had anything going on during the regular school week, so maybe Friday?"

"Anyday is honestly fine for me Sayori, just let me know and I'll be there."

"Then Tuesday it is! We'll go around 6 or 7, that way we'll have time to prepare."

"Sounds good. I look forward to it, I hope you're ready to see my skating prowess."

"You can skate?"

"Yeah, I used to do it a lot."

"I never knew that… I thought I knew all about you…"

"Even if you don't it's okay. It's not like I'm judging you for not knowing me in and out."

"But I want to be a good girlfriend."

"You don't have to do that to be a good girlfriend, you're already perfect. Don't sell yourself short, I love you for you."

"I love you too."

My heart couldn't be contained, the mental pacemaker I had installed exploded. I could feel the beats of my heart in my veins all around my arms and head. The situation was more than I could take.

"I'm gonna go to sleep Sayori, I'll talk to you in the morning. Goodnight."

I looked at the screen, the three little dots indicating her typing popped up. "Goodnight!" She responded, followed by a picture of her smiling whilst holding up her hands in a heart symbol.

"God she's so fucking adorable." I whispered. I could feeling my muscles gripping my heart as I stared at the image. I instantly saved the picture and made it my wallpaper. I looked at my phone in pride, just seeing her face calmed me, yet made me crazy.

 _I guess this is truly what love feels like._

I didn't take my eyes off of the screen for what seemed like hours, just looking into her eyes on the photo. They seemed to sparkle even though it was a still image, I could swear she had some sort of glow around her. I placed my fingers on her cheek, "boop." I laughed, but then stopped, "what am I doing? Why did I even say I was going to bed? It's like 7 o'clock."

I opened the phone, confident and ready to send her a message, but then I stopped and held my finger above the keyboard. _What if she thinks I only pretended to sleep because I wanted to ignore her?_ I closed the phone regrettably and got out of bed with my bowl of melted ice cream in hand. I could hear the television going off downstairs again, though this time the cause was Ryan, not some mysterious ghost or forgetfulness on my part.

"Oh, welcome back, didn't hear you come in." I said rubbing my right eye.

Ryan was on the floor with his legs laid out under the coffee table. He had switched out of his school clothes, they were laid on his bag by the door. I looked over to the tv, he was watching some sort of anime. I sat in the recliner to the right of him and looked on in curiosity. I kept glancing at him to see how he was reacting to it all. For the most part he was straight-faced, but occasionally I could see a gleam in his eye at the sight of mechs.

"You and your mech animes…" I muttered.

He still didn't move his sight from the screen, he was glued onto it like a mouse in a trap. He still spoke to me though, it was kind of eerie to say the least. "What's wrong with mechs Gaje?"

"Nothing, I just felt like saying it. What is this anime even about?"

He finally turned to me, with remote in hand. "I don't know, I was just browsing through the channels."

"Did you um, figure out who's working with who? I'm pretty sure I already know, but…" I looked off to the side.

"I'm going to be working with Natsuki, and you'll be with Yuri."

"Ok good, as mean as it sounds, I do not want to work with Nat. Not after today, it's way too soon… Also… On Tuesday, I don't know if you've planned anything, I really doubt you have, but if you have, I'm going with Sayori to an ice skating rink, so you'll be here alone.."

"Oh ok, I guess I will just do nothing and watch more anime."

"Why don't you like, ask for Monika's number or something? Speaking of which, how'd it go earlier today?"

"It went well, I finally told her how I felt. And she… didn't tell me how she felt, but I think she's open to the idea."

"How do you figure?"

"Now that I think about it, she told me it was like one of those dating sims."

"The ones with the linear objectives and no actual character development? Just give me gifts and I'll fuck you? Those?"

"No Gaje, not like one of those. It's different."

"Well, what'd she say specifically? Cause, I don't know what you mean."

"I don't know Gaje. Look It's going in a good direction, so no need to worry."

"..." I blankly stared him down. "What do you mean a 'good' direction?"

"She said something like I earned points and that I was somewhere between friend and best friend."

I looked at him, with tightly scrunched up lips, and a curious raise of my eyebrow. "I'm no expert, but… best hope you skip over, best friend. That's the friend zone territory."

"Whatever Gaje, I'll just have to figure it out."

"Okay well, quick way to get more 'points' as you said. Get her number, talk to her more, maybe give her a gift." I said ending it off with a snicker.

"Starting to sound like it _is_ a dating sim."

I placed my hand over my chin, "hmm, maybe they were onto something after all…"

"What are you talking about?"

"The dating sims, maybe they were right, that is how you get the grills." The seriousness of my face really never shows my true emotions, but boy does it make things more fun.

"Just shut up Gaje. I'll get her number on Monday."

"Or! How about this, I'll give you her number, and you can say that you got it from Sayori or something."

"I mean, shouldn't I ask her?"

"If you really want to. I don't care either way, just get it. You're hurting my spirits."

"What do you mean? You have one spirit."

"That's not what I'm talking about, I meant my motiv- Jesus Christ never mind."

"Ok just give me her number and I'll tell her it's me."

"Ok… it's in your phone now."

"You can just do that?"

"I mean yeah… I only do the snapping thing because it's fun, it'd be boring to just have things pop out of nowhere with no cause."

"Well I'm going to text her."

I began to speak in a lower tone of voice, "remember, no Russian."

Ryan paid no attention to my comment, swiftly pulling his phone onto the table before him. He looked down and pulled up the messenger app. He opened a new conversation and started messaging Monika.

I turned to watch the trash on the tv as he did that. It was a commercial break, but not for long. When the show finally returned from commercial break, it was just the credits. "You son of a bitch, fuck off." I threw the remote Ryan had placed on the corner of the table into the screen, it pierced it like a spear in the dirt. "Good, fuck you." I groaned as I rolled onto my side and stared into the kitchen, ignoring the fire hazard.

"Are you ok?" Ryan asked.

"Fuck them. The tv deserved it." I said, talking into the leather.

"Well whatever." Ryan scoffed.

I grovelled, arms crossed, like a man in a straight jacket. "Why am I even mad, I didn't even care for that show…" I sat up and looked at the dismantled screen, glass was littered all over the tv stand and carpet. The remote was sparking in the frame. I rolled my eyes and stared it down, watching as glass slowly rose in reverse, they formed back perfectly, seamlessly. The remote, still sparking off flew out of it and dropped to the table, back to normal. "As cool as that was, that takes too fucking long." I looked to Ryan who was just staring down at his phone, awaiting a response from Monika. "So did she respond yet or?"

"Not yet." He said looking down at the dimly lit phone.

"Mmmk." I looked around the room, my eyes wandering from blemish to blemish on the wall. Then Petey drew my focus as he walked out of the kitchen. "Oh there you are." He walked up the end of the chair and rubbed against it like a cat. I reached down to pet his head, but he just evaded it like I was trying to crush his skull. "Fuck you too then." I said, as I picked him up and brought him on my lap. "You can't leave now!" I began vigorously rubbing his belly as he tried squirming away. "Never!" A stray swipe from his paw caught me in the eye, "ah you fucker! Fine go away, I don't need you anyways!" He jumped from my lap and ran up the stairs.

As I gripped my eye, which was overflowing with tears, I heard a small buzz from the table. I looked, with my vision blurred, at Ryan, who was still blankly staring as he was before. "She respond?"

"Oh what, uhh let me check."

Ryan raised the phone up before his chest, blinking several times to get a clearer view. He squinted, and his expression changed dramatically, no longer a blank stare, but instead a slight smirk.

"So..?" I asked eagerly.

"She said hi."

"Boring." I pushed myself back into a lying position on the chair.

"Looks like she is typing something else." Ryan quickly added.

I stared into the roof as we both awaited the next message. I wasn't entirely interested in what she had to say, but I had nothing better to do, so I sat patiently.

 _Bzzzz._

I looked down at Ryan.

"And now?" I asked.

"She said that it was a pleasant surprise and asked how I got her number."

"Tell her from Sayori, she doesn't know I have her number."

He quickly went to tapping away at the keyboard, writing what I said to her. He got a message back from her almost instantly. "She said oh alright, be sure to give Sayori my thanks."

Ryan and Monika went back and forth for a while on the phone as I slowly drifted into dreamland. Though I wasn't allowed the peacefulness of sleep. Ryan, who was walking up the stairs, made the wood creak loudly. I turned to him in an instant, "Hay! Shut the fuck up!" It wasn't as aggressive as it sounded, it was a reference to a certain video.

"Shut up Trainwreckz." He said, further continuing a joke we had made.

He continued up the stairs as I put the recliner back into seating position. I kicked the foldable part back underneath and stumbled up the stairway to my room. When I got into bed I clicked the power button on my phone bringing up my new favorite picture. I stared at it for a few seconds, bringing me to a peaceful state of mind. I constantly pressed the power button so it wouldn't automatically go dark and kept my eyes closed. "Goodnight Sayori, for real this time. Hahaha... ah, kill me, I'm retarded."


	14. Killing Time

The Sun cracked open my eyes like a nice cold soda. I felt rejuvenated and alive, but strangely enough, uneasy. "Huh?" I hadn't noticed, but a small pillow was just in front of me. I had no clue where it came from, it looked like no other pillow in the room. I picked it up, it was extremely soft and was about the size of my head. I flipped the pillow over, it was embroidered with a small design of Sayori. "Where did you come from?" I noticed my phone directly under it, I set the pillow aside and picked up the phone.

There were a few notifications embedded on the screen, most of them were just text messages. The first few were from Sayori, the typical "good morning," and such. She had sent me a picture as well, showing off the pamphlet that her and Monika had been working on. It was still mostly colorless, but I could read the little designs on the side, there were words in minimal size that read, "redo, touch up, and color blue," throughout the outer borders.

I kept scrolling through her messages, my dry mouth cracking as I uncontrollably smiled. I licked my lips and wiped against them with the back of my hand. I brought my phone along with me as I stumbled into the bathroom. As I brushed my hair and readjusted my ponytail I tapped the occasional key to input my message. "Looks good, sorry I was still asleep. Can't wait to see the finished project."

I brought up my notifications, it seemed that the other messages I received were from Yuri. "Natsuki told me that her and Ryan were going to work together, so I wanted to ask if you could get some supplies for tomorrow, I can't go out today. I'll pay you back of course."

I wrote back that I would try my damndest to get all of the supplies. I clapped, like those clap on commercials for the light bulbs, out of thin air came a plastic bag, full of everything Yuri had requested.

The house was still relatively dim, the Sun only managing to shine through one window. The rest of the room was lit by a single lamp I left on all the time. I yawned and moved into the kitchen, I didn't feel like eating anything, which was odd for me. I walked to the faucet and grabbed a small plastic cup from the cabinet. I drank a quarter of the water, swished the other around in my mouth, and then drained the rest into the sink. I made quiet popping noises as I walked into the living room.

"Wonder what everyone's doing today." I said aloud, I had never seen Saturday in the game, but then again, no one had.

I decided to call up Sayori, she answered immediately, but very quickly I found out she was extremely busy this day. She apologized profusely for blowing me off, but I assured her it was fine. She had a math test to study for apparently. I hung up and scrolled down to Yuri's number. I texted her a quick message, "whatcha doin?"

She apparently was cleaning her home in preparation of visits from family. I started at Natsuki's number, I felt bad and wanted to text her, but I felt like with the way her father is… she might just be on lock down. Finally, I looked to Monika's number, she didn't know I had her number so it'd be kind of strange, but I could just say Sayori gave it to me. Though, I wanted to leave that business to Ryan.

I decided to take a dip in the pool, I walked to the back door and slid it open, and as usual, a blur of white and brown shot past my legs. Petey instantly ran to the corner of the yard, and started rolling around in the grass, scratching his back and in general just going insane. I ignored him and tiptoed towards the pool. I pulled my shirt by the collar and let go, a small puff of air shot to my face, and the clothes I was wearing changed accordingly. I wore a small white t shirt and swim trunks.

I sat on the border of the pool and dipped my feet in, it was freezing cold. I moved back a few feet and looked to the water, "Well, like a band-aid." I took a running start, ignoring the most essential of rules at a pool, and cannonballed into the deep end. I shot to the surface, feeling the rush of cold push through me. I felt a shiver up my spine as I shook my head aggressively. Not a second later I heard another splash behind me, Petey had jumped in as well.

He kicked his legs, swimming in circles around me. As he did so I could see a little mud trail lurching behind him, he had encircled me in some muddy pentagram. "When did you learn to swim?" I said as I stopped him in his tracks. He just panted and looked to me like I was ruining his fun. I let go of him and he made his to the shallow end, apparently all the fun had been drained then and there. He climbed up the small steps and ran into the house, still soaking.

"Petey!" I yelled as I watched him inside. My shoulders slouched and I rolled my eyes. I looked back to the water, "you better be glad I can easily clean this."

 _ **Snap**_ _._

I was lain on my back, I let the small increments of waves formed in the water carry me around, rocking me, like an old-timey ship. The clouds above began to move quickly, I could feel the breeze in the air gaining strength, which in turn moved the water more. A heavy storm was preparing to attack. Water kept splashing over into my nose, making me spit out in reflex.

A few moments later I heard a yell from in the house, I could only imagine it to be Ryan's. "Why Petey, why!?"

He walked outside, all of his clothes had darkened spots.

"I assume he jumped on you?" I said, looking over the crescent waves.

"I don't know Gaje, what do you think?" He said sarcastically.

"I mean it's either that or you pissed yourself. Or! Monika came over, in which case, you sly dog."

"Shut up Gaje."

"So she did?"

"No Gaje, she did not."

I rose up like a reverse domino, I stood atop the water, "well, that's a shame." The water had turned my shirt practically see through. I looked down at myself, I could see my nipples poking through. I made an exaggerated gasp and covered myself like a scantily clad lady, "you pervert!"

"Only a perv would think that way Gaje." He responded.

"The truest of pervs, like me, are only so, in seclusion."

"What were you doing out here?"

"Swimming, genius." I said as I changed my clothes back to normal.

"Right… well I'm hungry, are you going to make some food?"

"I'm only hungry for one thing. Wink wink."

"Eggs? Pancakes? Wings?"

"It's not a food, it's a person." I said, getting slightly annoyed that he was leading this conversation on.

"What? You eat people!? You monster."

"You know what, I could go for a cinnamon bun, if you know what I mean."

"Alright just stop Gaje."

Finally he had fallen to my pervish innuendos. I usually only talked this way around people who I was extremely close to, I enjoyed seeing peoples reactions. Ryan was always a fun target to mess with, he didn't mind sexual things, but he hated talking about it at unnecessary times.

"What'd I do? I just want a cinnamon bun." I held my hand out, a small package of plastic with a little cinnamon bun was lain against my palm. I didn't actually like cinnamon, but for the sake of the joke I ate it quickly.

"Yea sure Gaje, whatever you say. Give me some of those, please, I'm hungry."

"Why don't you just go make some food of your own? We have plenty of shit to make, I think there's a bag of pizza rolls in there somewhere."

"I mean, you're not wrong. Ok, fine." He began walking inside, still wearing the dampened clothing.

We both walked into the house, I tossed a towel I was using to dry my hair into the laundry room. I saw Petey napping on the floor, his fur was all bent out of shape and still wet. I knelt down and pressed my hand against his side, a small floof of air shot out of my palm and dried him entirely. He looked up confused, but swiftly plopped his head back on the carpeted floor.

"Not wet anymore are ya?" I said rubbing his head.

I pushed myself up, my knees creaking as I stood straight. I looked over to Ryan, he had the bag of pizza rolls leaning up against the microwave, he was looking around for something. "Need the scissors?" I asked, walking into the kitchen.

"Yeah."

I looked around as well, opening drawers and peering underneath random assortments of napkins and trash. "I really need to clean up the house again." I pushed my hand into my pocket and pulled out a pair of scissors, "here, I guess we don't have any."

As Ryan dumped out the rolls I began collecting trash like an inmate on the highway. I shoved it down into the garbage, smashing it to make more space. "Natsuki tell you anything about tomorrow? Like if you need supplies and such?"

Ryan yawned, bringing his hand to cover his mouth. "She said she's bringing the ingredients."

"Hmm, I guess that makes sense, she is the baker." I nodded.

The microwave began beeping loudly, signaling its heat death. With a pop of the door, he removed the plate, immediately burning his hand. He dropped the plate down, bringing his finger to his mouth, "agh, god dammit."

"The pizza rolls were too tempting." I snickered.

He set the plate down on the coffee table and picked up his phone. I grabbed the remote to the tv and started scrolling through the guide.

"How's it going with Monika?" I asked.

"I guess it's good. We're just talking about the festival right now."

"Ah…"

I sat quietly, bobbing my head back and forth. I craned my head around like a snake, "wanna do something?"

"What?"

"I don't know… want to…?" I sat silent, staring into the leather armrest. "Uh… fuck. I don't know what to do."

 _What do I want to do…? No… I can't do that, it's too soon for that. And, she's busy anyways._

"Want to go out to like the mall or something? I know there's one across town."

"If you want to, I don't care, what's there?"

"It's a mall." I started listing things off, common in a mall. "Clothes, food, games, candles, miscellaneous shit. Speaking of candles, I really want a watermelon scented candle."

"Do we even need to go? You can just get all that stuff for free."

"But that's boring... I want to see what this world has to offer, we've been stuck in this town for the past couple of days."

"Are you bored of this place already?"

"I mean I can't really do anything with them today, so yeah."

"Okay, let me just finish eating this."

 _ **Snap**_ _._ The food from his plate vanished, "there, you ate it." I walked to the door and began stretching. He looked over at me, "why'd you get rid of the food?"

"I didn't, it's in your stomach."

"B-but, that ruins the fun part of eating…"

I rolled my eyes and opened the door, "c'mon let's just go."

He sadly stood up, looking back at the plate like it was some memorial from the war.

The sky was dark, large cumulonimbus clouds covered everything, there wasn't a single clear patch of sky left. I could barely see the Sun's light, a small silhouette of it sat behind the clouds. "Looks like it might rain." I said opening the gate.

"Yeah, can you make an umbrella?"

"Yeah… here." I passed him a small umbrella, incapable of breaking. "This one's indestructible, cause most are shit."

He held it in his right hand like a knife, clenching the handle.

"This'll be a good opportunity to look for fun places to bring the others." I said giving Ryan a peculiar look.

"What are you talking about?"

I frowned and squinted my eyes, "dates. What else would I be talking about? Though, I suppose we could have some fun club outings as well."

"That's not a bad idea Gaje, you're finally thinking, I like it."

We walked through the town, reaching an area with all the local businesses and flea markets. It was much more crowded than our neighborhood. All the people seemed to be wearing the same style of clothing, plain colored t-shirts, and jeans or khakis. We would have to stop on the sidewalk often due to groups of people stopping to take pictures. Supposedly this area was a big tourist attraction for some reason.

"I didn't think there'd be a lot of people around here…" I whispered to Ryan.

"Yeah." He replied.

I began to feel small droplets of water brush against my skin. I sprouted my umbrella and stuck the handle into my collar, letting it float above my head with my powers. Ryan quickly unhinged the umbrella I gave him and shot it up above him. The umbrella swooshed the air and water around us.

"It's a nice change." I said looking up at the drizzle. I've always liked the rain, it was calming. I looked down at the ground, watching water droplets barrage the puddles already present on the street. I could only think of Sayori, her and me sitting out on a patio, her in my lap. Just staring off into the pouring rain. It brought a smile to my face.

"Y'know… I'm not one to speak seriously a lot of the time but... I, really am glad we're here. I'm glad you're here, glad this is real." I could feel water pushing up to my eyes, I guess I was sad. I wiped my face, but each time the water was instantly replace, but they never broke through the dam, remaining on the edge of my eyelids.

Ryan looked over at my teary face, "I'm glad too, glad I'm here, glad we're having a fun time… that we're finally doing something."

"Indeed." I said breathing out slowly.

We made our way out of the area and soon found ourselves near the mall. The entrance had a long brick road with trees creating a sort of "this way," sign. As we entered the sliding doors Ryan and I closed our umbrellas. We walked up to a large screen that was front and center, showing us where we were, and all the locations in the mall.

"Hmm. Where to first Rihanna?"

Ryan stared intently at the screen, scratching his chin, "uh… I don't know. How bout that way?" He pointed down the corridor.

"That's the bathroom."

"I have to use it. Be right back."

"Okay, I'm going to go sit by the fountain over there."

I walked through the mall, looking up and down the walls and windows. There was quite a bit there, clothing shops, game stores, a little arcade, a few restaurants, and even a manga store. I sat on the concrete around the fountain, watching the people pass me by. It felt just like back home whenever I went to the mall. Being dragged along, waiting for people to wander from store to store, only wasting time. Except now I was wasting my own time.

"Ppblt." I kicked my feet and stared at them.

A few moments later I saw someone else's shoes in my sight. I looked up to Ryan. "Have you figured out where you want to go?"

"I wanna go bowling." He said.

"There's no bowling alley here Roman."

"Then let's go play darts!"

"Shut up cousin, I do not want to play darts, I have to follow the damn train!"

Ryan, being the good interpreter he is, realized I had changed from _GTA IV_ to _GTA San Andreas._ "CJ!?"

"I want to check out the candles first before we do anything."

Ryan's head dropped instantly and he snored loudly.

I stood up and started walking away. The candle store was only a minute away. A mixture of heavenly scents and putrid smells flowed into my nose, making me both relaxed and perturbed. I scanned the rows of glass bottles on the shelves, searching for the one scent I desired above all. I wanted to ask about it, but I didn't want to bother the cashier. I looked back at Ryan who was bumping his head into the wall just outside the doors.

"Are you not coming in? What are you doing?"

He stopped an inch away from the last tap, "I don't know, the wall looked like it wanted to be smacked… by my head. When will you be done?"

"When I find the watermelon scented candle…"

"Are you looking for something specific?" A lady behind me asked.

I started talking before I turned, "uh, yeah… do you have any watermelon scented candles here?"

She had blond hair draped down her shoulders. She had an average build, weight, height, and size. "We should have some over by the register, they're a rare seasonal scent." She walked away to the counter and leaned down to grab something from below. "You're in luck! We just got some today." She popped back up with a glass jar labeled, "watermelon." I walked up and she began ringing it up for me.

"That'll be $14.76."

I pulled out a card, it had no specific brand on it, and put it into the chip reader. It accepted it instantly and a receipt started churning out.

"Here you are, have a good one." She handed me the bag and receipt.

"You too." I said walking out.

I came outside and found Ryan's face smushed into the wall, practically half asleep.

"I'm done, we can move on now."

"Finally, where to now?"

"You didn't think of a place while I was in there?"

"Hmmm… did I? Maybe it's the arcade!"

"Alright, I guess." I brought my phone to my hand and looked. "We still have plenty of time before it gets late anyways, four or five more hours tops."

"Okay, onward Gaje, to the arcade!"

I snapped my fingers, sending the bagged candle back home. As Ryan and I walked to the arcade I could hear Ryan humming along to a familiar tune, the tune of "Your Reality."

"You think she'll sing that come festival time?" I asked.

Ryan shook his head, bringing him back to the world, "I-uh mean, possibly… I don't think it'd be exactly the same."

"Well, I think it could be the same. We'll find out. She never did tell us whether or not she was playing the piano or making the song."

"I guess you're right."

I opened the glass door that lead to "Stephen's Arcade." The first thing we saw, was a pile of kids on the ground. They were apparently fighting over candy from a pináta. We walked over the piranha pit and moved to the front. I walked up to the counter and handed the guy standing there my card, he handed me back two cards, one full of tokens for the machines, and of course mine.

"Use it wisely and be sure to get all the tickets you can." I pointed up at the prize pool behind me on a shelf. "We need to get that damn PlayStation."

Ryan looked up at the top prizes, "but I want the dinosaur…" He said with a sad frown.

"Just go."

He walked away like a zombie, mindlessly staring at the many machines around us. Dancing games, racing games, roulettes. I took a second look, "wait. A roulette?" I looked away, my eyes were focused on something else. A shooter. It was different than most, not gritty or dark, but warm colors and upbeat. Though that was deceiving, it was a hunting game.

I picked up the plastic gun, attached by a long rubber wire. I observed the engravings on the plastic and set it down. I wasn't really in the mood to play any games. I found Ryan again on the other side, strumming a plastic guitar.

I paused the game mid-strum and stood next to him. "I'm not really in the mood for this I'm gonna go watch those kids murder each other."

"Oh, alright, more games for me then."

And so I did, for about an hour. Watched as kids battled each other with sticky hands, and candy covered mouths. I saw Ryan awkwardly trying to play one of the dancing games. He kept stomping down on the left side, it seemed to be broken. I looked back to one of the kids in front of me, he and I seemed to be having some sort of staring contest that I had initiated by facing him.

"I will not blink small child." I said

"You're ugly." The child responded.

"You little bitch."

"Ooh he said a curse word."

"You win this round child." I blinked and stood my post, walking over to the worst dancer of 2018. "Ryan, how many tickets do you have?"

"I have five k. I won the jackpot on that." He pointed over to a large wheel.

I shook my head, "I guess that enough for a shit ton of candy."

"I don't want candy, I want other stuff."

I rolled my eyes and went back to my post, Ryan walked into the prize section and started grabbing whatever suited his desire. A small gelatin hand that sticks to things, a Chinese finger trap, a slinky, and some packs of fun dip.

He came over to me, a sugar stick hanging from his mouth. "Okay I'm ready when you are."

I pushed up, "okay, the kids here are almost lifeless anyways." We walked through the doors. "We still have like a couple more hours before the mall closes." I said looking down to my phone. "Wanna go to like a restaurant?"

"Hell yeah, I'm starving."

"When aren't you… Okay let's go to the… SUSHI PLACE!" I looked at a nearby screen and saw the restaurant, I instantly bolted across the path, "the sushi shall be mine!"

I looked back, Ryan was leisurely walking along. "You take too long and I'll eat it all without you!" I yelled.

I opened the glass door and looked back at the chefs and staff, "thanks again!"

"No probrem." The chef shouted from over the glass shelf.

Ryan and I recuperated from our meal at the doorway. I stretched and yawned loudly, looking over to the outside area. It was nearly pitch black, the only light being from the mall itself not the moon or stars.

"We should get back."

"Alright I guess it's time." He replied.

We made our return trip, walking past the row of trees, through the market zone/tourist attraction, and past the park next to our home. I had marked a couple of spots that we could go, Sayori and I, and all the others. Most of them were restaurants and small novelty stores, but the one that piqued my interest was the local art museum. I was curious to see what art here was like, though I imagined it would be the same as back home.

I unlocked the door to the house and tiredly pushed it open. "Lock it behind y-you Ryan, I'm _yawn_ , going to sleep."

Ryan, influenced by me, yawned as well. "Same."

I crawled up the stairs, clinging to the railing. My feet were sore as all hell, my knees were crying for a rest. I jumped into bed, making the covers fly up in a flash like a hero's cape.

 _ **Bzzzz.**_

Face in the pillow, I slowly brought the phone to my face. Forgetting the most crucial of things, the phones brightness, I blinded myself for a short while. I turned the brightness down quickly, a small notification started forming in my eyes.

I slid it open, opening to my messages.

"Hey Gaje! I finished studying, it was really tiring. I'm sorry I ignored you… xoxo."

I chuckled and replied, "it's fine, I don't mind, your future is just as important to me as ours. Xoxo."

"What are you up to?" She asked.

"I'm going to sleep, me and Ryan went to the mall, I was looking for spots to maybe bring you for a date."

"Oh… ehehe, what'd you find?"

"Well mainly food, but there's an art museum that looks nice."

"I love art! We should totally go there sometime!"

"No doubt… Well I'm getting close to passing out, so I'll talk to you tomorrow. I Love you, g'night."

"Love you more! G'night."

I closed the phone and buried my face into the mattress again. "Love you the most."


	15. Cupcakes and Steel

I grabbed a couple of eggs from the fridge and placed them on the counter. I looked to Ryan, he was watching the same anime from a few days ago. "How many eggs do you want?"

"I'll have two eggs."

I turned back to the carton in the fridge and pulled two more out. As I cooked the bacon sizzling grease flew up into my face, singing my cheeks. Smoke began filling the room, I could hardly breathe, I turned on stove fan. The smoke eventually cleared while I cooked the eggs for the two of us. I set out the plates on the counter and grabbed Ryan's attention. "Alright, yours is on the left." He stood up and scratched his back. He reached out and took the plate, I threw a plastic fork atop the fluffy eggs as he began walking back. I followed him in with my own and we both sat on the couch, watching the show.

"So… you ever figure out what this is about?" I asked, holding a piece of bacon between my fingers.

"No, it's all over the place with the plot. I don't understand it."

I lowered the bacon down like a crane, dropping it in my mouth. I swallowed and nodded slightly. "I'll give this bacon a solid…. Three out of five." I went to grab another piece and looked to the screen, "well, why are we watching it then?"

"Because… there's nothing else to do."

I hit the guide button on the remote, "there's literally an infinite amount of shows. I'm sure one of these is better than this shit." I scrolled down, looking through all of the strange titles. _The Chinese Xylophone, Seryth the Quasar, and Ghuile Ghuile Ghoul_. "What the fuck are these title names?" I looked over to Ryan who was poking his eggs. "Okay... maybe you're right, all of these shows do look stupid."

"Well, there has to be something good there." He said.

"At this point I'd rather stick a hot iron on my ass." I moved back to the kitchen and washed off my plate. "And besides, the others should be here soon, how about we just prepare for that."

"Alrighty then. Let's go." He walked into the kitchen and dropped his plate in the sink as well.

As I walked out I looked to him, "go where? We aren't going anywhere."

"I meant like, let's get started."

"We have different assignments."

I wandered back through the living room and stood at the base of the stairs. I just thought about what Ryan told me yesterday, "we don't have cupcake pans do we?"

"I don't know I haven't checked yet."

"Is Natsuki bringing any?"

"I don't think so, she said that she was going to bring the ingredients for it. So maybe we should get some."

"Okay, well… there." I pointed to the kitchen table. There were as many utensils as I remembered that were required for baking. Bowls, a few whisks and spatulas, etc.

Ryan looked into the kitchen, "thanks Gaje, going to be needing those."

"Oh, here take this as well." I grabbed a phallic object from out of my back pocket and tossed it to him. He caught it out of reflex, but soon regretted it.

"Why? Why did you give me this?" He looked down at the toy, contempt, with a look of confusion.

"Remember, gifts equals more points!" I smiled and chortled.

"Oh my god Gaje, I am not giving this to anybody." He tossed it back at me, but it stopped inches from my face.

An outburst of laughter poured from my lungs as I realized what this scenario looked like. I walked to the side and looked at the floating dildo. "Ah, fine, fine." _**Snap**_. It disappeared, I turned back to Ryan. "It was a joke, give her this." I tossed him back a small black box, made of velvet fabric.

He clasped the box, enclosing it between his hands. "Wow, looks nice. What's in it?"

The joke, my dick in a box, shot into my mind. "It's… just open it."

Ryan looked down at the case and popped the box open. A bright shimmer like a holy light shot out, lighting the entire room. He looked away, shielding his eyes. The light slowly dimmed and he looked down, there was a golden ring in it. In the middle was a large emerald stone with brown topazes encircling it.

"I'd say it fits, emerald and brown." I said, starting to walk up the stairs.

"Holy moly, Gaje, this is beautiful." His mouth was agape, he couldn't take his eyes off of it.

"Indeed it is, it matches my eyes. I'm still thinking of one for Sayori though… anyways, I'm going to fix up my room, let me know when they're here."

"Thanks man... will do."

I opened the door to my room, like back in my original life, it was messy, yet not to the point of unlivable. I picked up the pile of clothes that had been stacking up for the past week. I opened a small wormhole in the wall, leading to the laundry room. I started up the washer, with all the clothes inside and closed the portal. I hid the pillow of Sayori in one of my cabinets in my computer desk. I looked down at the floor, "I guess that's really all I needed to do…"

I walked over to my laptop and opened the screen, within 20 seconds the entire thing was up and running. There wasn't much I could do on it, except for playing some solo player games I had installed. _Resident Evil 4, Civilization IV, OSU!_ , that was about it. I clicked on _Microsoft Word_ and waited for the document to show up. It was the poem I had written for the festival. Monika thought I was reading the same one I used on Friday, everyone still did. The one in the document was the original, the unedited one that expressed my feelings for Sayori. I stared at the screen, reading it over and over, emphasizing different words.

I heard a slight knocking sound behind me as I was glued to the screen. I turned my head, my eyes still slightly focused on the laptop. "Yeah?"

"Yo Gaje, Yuri just got here, she's waiting for you."

"Oh, send her up if you could." I closed my laptop and walked towards the closet to retrieve the supplies we would be using.

"Ok I'll do that."

I gave him a thumbs up and jumped onto my bed. I dropped the bag to the carpet, it was laid out like a dead jellyfish. As I did so Yuri lightly tapped the door and entered the room, observing me. "G-good afternoon, Gaje."

"Oh, hey Yuri, how's it going?"

"I'm doing exceptional, thanks for asking."

She set her bag down on the carpet. She stood in the middle of the floor, unsure of what to do. She looked around the room curiously, her eyes darting around from corner to corner. "It's very clean…" She muttered.

"Ah, yeah I was fixing up for your visit."

 _More out of compulsion rather than caring._

I got off the bed and sat against its side on the carpet. "You can take a seat if you'd like Yuri."

"A-ah yes, thank you." She lowered herself to the carpet and crossed her legs. "Did you get the paper?" She looked in the plastic bag, rustling her hands around it.

"Yeah, it should be in there." I said looking at her take out things one by one. She grabbed the small package of paper at the very bottom and brought it to her lap.

"I bought some things on the way here as well, that should prove useful for the atmosphere tomorrow."

"So what exactly are we going to be making, besides the poster."

"Mainly decorations and atmospheric enhancements."

"Like lighting and candles?"

"Exactly. Most people are only going to stop by due to curiosity, but still, I'd like to give them an experience they won't regret." She reached into her bag, "I have these as well…" she pulled out some candles and her diffuser.

 _Oh boy_

"I was planning on covering the windows in the club with black paper and lighting some candles."

 _This is textbook commentary from her... Does she have the knife?_

"That sounds nice, what about that thing?" I pointed to her hand.

She looked down to the diffuser, "oh this? It's a diffuser for essential oils, it sprays them out here." She pointed to its opening.

"Do you have any oils for it right now?"

"I do actually. I love aromatherapy, having your mood enhanced or changed just by certain oils is fascinating. Wouldn't you agree Gaje?" She pulled out a vial of jasmine oil.

"I suppose so, I've never actually been under the influence of… oils." I looked down at the vial.

She placed the oil in the diffuser and turned it on, it began spraying out like a geyser. I raised a brow and looked to her, "what does jasmine oil do?"

She smiled and set it aside, "jasmine helps enhance emotions, let's them flow through your body, it's quite relaxing. It makes your body feel warmer, and your heart will pound more heavily."

"You're planning on using that scent for the performance as well?"

She nodded and started unpacking the origami paper, "now then, what we're going to be doing with this, is not origami, but instead we're going to write words on the paper and I'm going to tie the ribbons through them all to hang up around the room. I'm planning on also making a curtain on the doorway with them."

"Alright, sounds good. Should I use marker or pen?" I held the corresponding utensils in my hand, eying each while looking back to Yuri for confirmation.

"The marker would be better, makes it easier to see, brings attention." She handed me half the stack of paper and we began writing words down, stacking them upon each other in the middle of the room. Yuri started rummaging through her bag, taking out a pocket knife. She began cutting through the ribbon, slicing through it like nothing, just like it was described in the game.

"Yuri."

"Hmm?"

"Is that… one of the knives you used to cut yourself with?"

She had a panicked expression on her face as she looked directly into her reflection on the blade. "Y-yes… but! I-I haven't used it for that, I promise!"

"I'm not saying I don't believe you Yuri, you can relax, it's fine." I placed my arm on her shoulder and smirked. "It's just… don't you think using something else that didn't play a part in that would be better?"

She closed the knife and placed it down, "you're right… h-here, could you keep it?" She placed it in my hand and I put it on my bed.

"I have some scissors, those'd be a bit easier." I grabbed the pair out from my desk cabinet and gave it to her, but not before I looked down at her sweater sleeve. "Yuri, can I… can I see your scars?"

"W-what!?" She pulled back and held her arms close, but she slowly lowered them down once more. "W-why?"

"I'm just curious."

She turned away and held her arm out. "O-okay…"

I started rolling her sleeve up, she seemed to twinge as the clothing skid across her skin. I could hear her breathing getting hoarser. The cuts were relatively healed, it looked like a nest of pink snakes wrapped around her arm. I pitied her, but I was also concerned, some of the wounds didn't look treated. "Have you cleaned any of the wounds?"

"S-some of them…" She said glancing over.

I stood up, "I'll be right back." I grabbed the knife off of the bed, I wasn't planning on taking any chances. Yuri didn't seem to notice. I came back with a wet rag and a large roll of bandages. Yuri was curiously prodding through the cabinet in my desk. "Yuri?"

"A-ah! I'm sorry I was just…" She trailed off and covered her embarrassment.

I looked to the drawer, "it's fine… I don't actually know what's in there." I knelt down and pulled open the drawer as well, there was a stack of explicit manga. I took one out and flipped through it. "Huh, never knew this was here…"

Yuri peered over and stared at the cover, "o-oh that's… I'm sorry I didn't mean to intrude on your…"

"I don't care, really Yuri, it's whatever." _Thankfully you didn't open the drawer with the pillow in it._ I sat down next to her after shutting the drawer and started dabbing the rag against her skin. Her breathing seemed to ease as I pressed it down more and more. "Are you alright Yuri?" I asked, looking at her from the corner of my eyes.

"Ah… yes."

"Okay." I finished up cleaning the cuts and began wrapping the gauze around her arm, securing it with a few small strips of tape. "There, all done." I looked to her other arm, "do you have any on the other arm?" She shook her head and I put up the stuff. I heard the door downstairs opening as I made my second return, I looked down the stairs and saw Natsuki holding a rather large bag. "Must be all the ingredients." I whispered. I opened the door to the room and Yuri and I went back to working on all of the decorations, starting of course, with the poster.

* * *

I sat in the kitchen, tapping my fingers along the edge of the table. Natsuki should've been here a couple of minutes ago, that's what she had texted at least. I looked at all the pans and bowls Gaje had made, they were shiny and brand new, I could see my reflection multiple times in each one, my face was distorted and twisted up. I bobbed my head around, watching my face become enlarged more and more.

 _Ding dong._

I whipped around to the door and opened it quickly. Natsuki was staring down at the concrete steps, apparently she hadn't heard me open the door. "Nat? Hello?"

"Huh? Ah! H-hello Ryan." She looked around me into the living room. "Gaje isn't in there, is he?"

"No, him and Yuri are already upstairs."

"Oh, alright…" She smiled and pushed past me. "Well, no time to waste, we got to make all these cupcakes by 5. I have to get home for dinner." She stormed into the kitchen, and pounded her fist into her other hand. "Good you already have everything out!" She hoisted her bag onto the table and started taking out multitudes of packages and bags. I watched as she moved the ingredients and tupper ware around to the counters. She opened a bag of flour, grabbed measurement cups and the largest bowl we had.

"You have milk and eggs?" She asked, pausing at the fridges doors.

"Yeah, there should be some more in there."

She opened the fridge and grabbed the eggs and milk and placed them with the flour and measurement cups. "You know how to make cupcakes right? Or do I need to explain it to you?"

"No, I know how to make them, I took cooking classes for two years at my previous school."

"Well, what they teach in school won't compare to my baking techniques." She poured out a ton of flour into the bowl and cracked two eggs inside. She probed through the cabinets above the stove, using a small step ladder we had underneath the table. She grabbed the salt shaker and added some salt into the mixture. She pulled out a stick of butter and dumped a fourth of a cup of sugar into the bowl. She grabbed the jug of milk and poured it out in the measurement cup. She nearly lost control of the jug, the force of the milk inside shaking had an unexpected amount of strength. She poured the milk into the bowl and set it aside. "That's good enough." She grabbed the whisk from the table and passed it to me. "Stir all that together."

"Okay." I struggled to move all the ingredients. As time went on however, it felt less like trying to dig a spoon into solid ice cream, and more like sliding a knife through butter. Some of the mix had spilled out of the sides of the bowl, and each time Natsuki caught me dropping some she had a fit.

"Ryan! We're trying to bake cupcakes, not paint the counters!"

"What does that even mean!?" My arms felt like jello, I stopped for a moment to catch my breath, but was whipped back into shape, literally.

Natsuki smacked my back with a plastic spatula, "no slacking!"

"Dang Nat, don't be so aggressive!"

"We have a deadline Ryan!"

I dropped the whisk after furiously whipping up the batter, "there, you happy?"

She walked to my side and looked at the batter. "Hmm… good!" She grabbed the bowl and moved to the kitchen table, dumping the batter out into each individual hole of the sheet. The batter slopped out in chunks, like gravy in a can.

"Wait… agh! We didn't even preheat the oven!"

"Don't worry, I started it up before I began mixing." I said pointing to the stove top.

"Oh… good job, I guess." She handed over the sheet.

I deposited the pan into the oven, a wave of heat hit my eyes, making them water. "Okay, how many more should we even make?" I asked wiping sweat from my forehead.

Natsuki put her hands on her hips and looked down at the floor. "Maybe… three dozen more. We have enough in the bowl for another batch, so you just mix another bowl. Then we'll only need to wait for them to cook and we'll decorate them."

"Alright I'll get moving then."

I emptied the rest of the bowl into a new pan and placed it beside the other one. This time I gathered up all the ingredients as Natsuki sat in one of the stools by the table. She was looking up towards the stairwell at a constant rate, between that and the oven. I started whisking through the new bowl, easier than before.

"What do you think they're doing?" Natsuki mumbled.

I turned around, "I don't know, maybe just doing the poster."

"Yeah… yeah, you're probably right." She started humming the tune to twinkle twinkle little star quietly, blending in with the soft hum of the fridge. "Y'know I uh, I talked to Yuri yesterday… and she told me that her and Gaje read together every day out in the courtyard…" She tugged her skirt and adjusted herself in the chair. "You don't think that Gaje… likes her, do you?"

I cut off any other thoughts she had, "I don't think so, Gaje would have told me if he did."

"Then… what about Sayori? They've been friends since they were kids. Has he said anything about her?".

"I don't know, maybe? He doesn't really talk about that stuff."

She looked down at her feet. "Maybe…"

 _DING._

I looked up, the timer on the stove went off. I grabbed the oven mitts from the counter and pulled out the pans. They were all white, with perfectly smoothened out tops. Natsuki hopped out from her stool and inspected them all one by one. "Perfect." She plopped the cupcakes out of the sheet onto a plate. She went in her bag and pulled out some more ingredients, sprinkles, piping bags, and of course homemade frosting.

"Do you know how to frost as well?" She asked handing me the piping bag.

"Yes Nat, I know how to frost."

"Good, get to it." She handed me the container of frosting and walked to the bowl I had just mixed. While she poured the remaining batter in the other pans I decorated the cupcakes with pink and yellow frosting.

"Is this good?" I asked.

Natsuki cocked her head to the side, looking just around my arm at the cupcakes. "Eh… good enough."

"What do you mean? This is perfection."

"Keep telling yourself that." She said giggling.

"You saying yer better than me?"

"I'm not saying that, but yeah."

"Alright then let me see you do it then."

"You're on." She put the other trays into the oven and walked over to me. "Move over fatty." She bumped me with her hip, pushing me over.

"Alright shorty."

She shot me a glare, like that of a menacing gerbil. "Just because I'm short doesn't mean I won't kick your ass."

"Language Nat."

"Shut up, Fat."

"Alright you're asking for it."

"What are you gonna do? Sit on me?"

I reach the closest thing to me, which was some frosting that was spilt on the countertop and smeared it on her face. "That."

She picked up the piping bag and removed the lid. She squeezed the side of the bag as hard as she could sending a shot of frosting towards me. The frosting smacked against my cheeks, I could see a blob of it under my eyes.

"What? Trying not to eat the icing to prove me wrong?" She said teasingly.

I wiped the frosting from my face, mushing it all into my hand. I threw it back at her as she ran for cover behind the table, smacking it against her shirt. I could hear her snicker from behind the table, "is that all you got?"

"There's more where that came from." I said aggressively, running to the counter. I picked up the bag of flour, it was almost empty but there was a small layer left at the bottom. I ran over to her and dumped it over her head.

"Ahh! Hay! My hair!" She swatted the flour in her hair and coughed. "Ryan you idiot!"

I stood there triumphant, laughing to myself. "Take that Nat! Not so tough now are you!?"

Natsuki slowly rose to her feet, her face as white as a ghost. "Why'd you have to go and ruin my hair? I just fixed it…" She looked pretty down, she curved her lips up and looked disgruntledly at me.

"Oh, uh… my bad, was not really thinking, just doing."

"Urgh… where's the bathroom? I need to wash this all out." She was still running her dainty hands through her hair, pulling out the little ribbons, and brushing out puffs of flour.

"It's upstairs... sorry for ruining your hair."

She walked away, leaving a trail of flour underneath her.

 _Ooops_.

* * *

"Is that all that we needed to make?" I asked.

Yuri tapped her chin, "I believe so." She looked down at her phone, "and not a second too soon, I have to go, I have to make dinner soon."

"Oh, alright, well, what do you want me to do with the poster and stuff?"

Yuri gracefully stood up, like a delicate blossoming flower. "I can take all of these, but the poster has to dry, could you bring it tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure."

Yuri picked up her bag and started to make her way to the door. I followed along, but we were halted by a pink haired ghost. "N-Natsuki? What happened to you?" Yuri asked, looking her up and down.

Natsuki looked to Yuri then to me. "Nothing!" She huffed, turning away and walking into the bathroom. Yuri looked to me, confused. I shrugged and we continued down to the living room, where upon I caught Ryan leaning against the counter, staring at the oven.

"What happened to her?" I asked.

Ryan craned his head around, "stuff happened."

"Oookay."

Yuri opened the door to outside, she turned and waved goodbye to Ryan. She started walking out the door and I waved as well. I shut the door softly and turned back to Ryan. I looked at the mess that the kitchen had become. "What exactly happened?"

"We were baking and she called me—"

"Fat." A voice squeaked from behind me, Natsuki peered over the stairs railing. She looked directly at me, "ca-can I use your shower? The flours not coming out of my hair."

"Uhh, yeah I guess so, do you need like soap or?"

"Well duh!"

"Okay." I made my way over to the stairs and started walking up.

"W-what are you doing?" She nervously asked.

"I need to get you the shampoo and stuff, and also, this showers a bit… dangerous."

"D-dangerous? What do you mean?"

"Basically if you don't put the dials in certain spots you'll either burn or freeze."

"What!? There's no way I'm getting in there."

"So you're fine with this?" I pointed up to her hair, and she looked up as well.

"N-no…"

"Okay then, c'mon." I opened the bathroom door and walked towards the small cabinet in the corner of the room. I opened it and grabbed a small bottle of shampoo, I placed it on the counter and leaned over in the shower. As I started to turn the knobs I noticed Natsuki looking down at the floor, gripping her arm. She looked a bit anxious.

"Are you alright?"

She tensed up, "yeah! I'm fine!"

"You don't look fine, and I'm not saying that just cause of the flour."

"I'm fine, quit asking!"

"Okay." I kept twisting the knobs and feeling the water that was letting out of the spout. "Hmm…" I looked around as I left my hand under the spout. "There, perfect." I stood up, "there's a towel just above the toilet on the rack. Soap of course, there. Are you just going to rewear that?"

"What else would I wear?" She responded irritatedly.

"You could wear some of my clothes if you wanted, I have a bunch of one size fits all."

"Y-your clothes? Uh… no I'm okay."

"Alright, I'll be downstairs." I walked out of the bathroom and shut it behind me. When I came back to the kitchen, Ryan had finished cleaning up. Four dozen cupcakes, decorated and wrapped in cellophane sat just on the counter on small plastic plates.

"Damn, you finished fast."

"Wasn't too hard to do, took me no time at all."

"Toot your own horn more." I said.

Ryan began putting all the dishes into the sink. "Hey, you should talk with Natsuki." He said, turning back to me.

"I just did. And she's taking a shower, I'm not going up there. But I mean… if you go, I'm not judging."

"I'm talking about after her shower. You know she still has feelings for you right?"

"Ugh… yes I know, but what else can I say? I told her I didn't feel the same. That should be enough."

"Well, you never told her that you were with somebody already as well."

"I'm telling everyone on Monday."

"Yea,but she needs to know before. She still thinks she has a chance, it will be somewhat better if you tell her now. And if you don't want to, I can tell her."

I groaned and clenched my teeth, "it's not my call anymore, me and Sayori both agreed not to tell til then. So… if you truly want her to know, you tell her."

"Alright, whatever I'll tell her."

"Okay. I'm just gonna… well I can't go upstairs yet, I'll just sit on the couch."

I stared at the tv, nothing was playing, it was just black. The familiar squeak of the shower sounded off. I closed my eyes as I felt the tension of the room rise in that very instant. A few moments later the door from upstairs clinked and Natsuki walked back down, feeling spry and new.

"Much better." She said.

I picked myself up and started making my way to my room. "Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow Nat, I'm gonna go ahead and go to sleep now."

"But its only four. Why are you sleeping now!?"

"I." I looked away, "I didn't sleep at all yesterday."

"Oh, okay… see you tomorrow then." She sauntered over to the kitchen. I looked back to Ryan as I made my way up.

 _Good luck Ryan._

* * *

Natsuki patted her hair, "I got it all out! Thanks again for that Ryan." She said moodily.

"You're welcome Nat."

"I wasn't thanking you! I was being sarcastic."

She looked at the finished cupcakes. I opened my mouth to speak, but waited for her to finish ogling the sweets. "Hey, can we talk about something?"

"What?"

I licked my lips and looked to the wooden stools, "here, um… let's sit."

"This better not be something weird." She pulled out the stool and took a seat.

I rested my arm on the table and nervously tapped my fist against it. "So, I wanted to talk about Gaje."

"What about him?"

"Well, the thing is… him and Sayori… they're… together."

She burst out laughing, "Ryan, if you're gonna make jokes you're gonna have to be more convincing. As if he told you that in the time it took me to shower."

"Him and Sayori have been together since Friday... and I might have already known."

Her laughing came to a standstill, she looked at me for a second, not blinking. "Wait… you're not joking?"

"N-no im not."

"Oh…" Her head dropped down, "then that's why…" Her eyes shot open. "He didn't tell Sayori about what happened right!?"

"No, I'm pretty sure he didn't tell her anything."

"That's a relief…" She paused for a moment before looking back into the air. "I almost ruined her dream, without even knowing it, oh I'm so stupid!" She softly smacked her forehead with her hand.

"It's not your fault that Gaje didn't tell you anything." I said, trying to stop her from blaming herself.

"But Sayori always talks about him, everyone in the club knows she likes him, and I..." She bit down on her her index finger as she looked into nothingness.

"I wanted to tell you because I felt you should know."

"Well, thank you for letting me know… I should have known I stood no chance." She chuckled, "there was no way he'd like me was there?"

"That is not true Nat."

"Of course it's true! He likes Sayori, and I can't change that… I can't change it…"

"I know that it hurts right now but you shouldn't beat yourself up over it."

"I know I shouldn't, I don't know... it just feels like someone punched me in the heart." She looked up at me, with sorrowful eyes, "well. I'm happy for Sayori… she deserves it." She put on her false bravado, but I knew there was no way she wasn't crying on the inside. I reached out to attempt to comfort her, but she just pushed me off and went back to her usual tsundere ways.

"Get off Ryan! I don't want your gross germs on me."

"I was just trying to comfort you, I see how it is… _sniff_ , I'm not wanted here either?" I started fake crying into my hands.

"Shut up Ryan." She laughed.

"Why does nobody love me!?" I said, muffled by my hands.

Natsuki punched my shoulder, "c'mon Ryan quit joking around…"

"It's too late… the damage is done."

"You're starting to piss me off Ryan."

"Alright… I'm done…" I said raising my head. I looked over to the finished cupcakes, then to the timer on the stove, "well, we still have an hour and a half left before you have to leave... what do you want to do? We can read some manga or watch some anime."

"You have manga!?" She shot up out of her chair, which subsequently lowered her height.

"Didn't I tell you that I read manga? You really are a baka."

"You're a baka! You just got here, I didn't think you had any money to buy manga."

"Well I took some that Gaje had and I also got some of my own."

"Well!? Let's go already, you better have some good ones." She started making for the stairs, leaving me behind. I followed her up and we spent the remainder of time looking through different series, though the time eventually came where she had to leave and I was once again left alone. Gaje never came out of his room for the rest of the day. I tried knocking, but either he was ignoring me, or sleeping... or jacking off.


	16. The Festival

With yesterday behind us, the day of the festival had finally arrived. Ryan and I grabbed the stuff the girls left behind, joined up with Sayori down the way, and dropped it all off at the club before we went to our classes. I waited out in the courtyard, met up with Yuri, read for the normal hour, and waited longer for Ryan at lunch time. When I saw Ryan come out with his tray, he looked distraught, like something was bothering him, but I didn't think anything of it, he looked the same when he was exhausted, and on this particular day, he was. He sat down beside me and began prodding at his food, moving his rice from side to side, swirling his soup in circles. He picked up the spork, raised it to his mouth, and drank some of the soup.

After a while of his remaining silent he looked at me, "how are you doing?"

"Pretty anxious." I said, "but I think I can manage. But how about you? You don't look too hot."

"I'm really tired."

"Then I can expect some juicy news later."

No one said anything after that for a while, Ryan just picked at his food, eating a single grain of rice or slurping up a minuscule amount of liquid from his soup. "Monika's... been getting a bit more... bold, in her flirting."

I raised a brow, I knew what he meant, but I was confused. "Is that a bad thing? I mean, I'd be a bit uncomfortable, if it was someone I didn't know so well. But if it was Sayori, I'd be all for it."

"No..." Ryan sighed, "it's not bad, she's just... doing it when I'm vulnerable."

"Sounds sexy."

"Maybe... maybe."

"Maybe what?"

He shook his head and his cheek puffed slightly, "I don't know." He absentmindedly looked at the styrofoam cup, "hey can you heat this up?" I touched the cup and did so, he slurped some of it up. "Thanks."

I rhythmically beat my knees with my hands, "so are you doing the same poem from Friday?"

"Yeah. I didn't have enough time to write another. You?"

"Yeah I am as well, but I'm adding in a few lines."

"What for?"

"They're about Sayori, they were in it before, but we didn't want to tell everyone about our relationship. Though, you saw how that worked out. It'll only be a surprise to Yuri now."

"That sounds nice." He tipped the container back, drinking the remnants of the soup. "Well.. I should get going, bells gonna ring soon, bye."

I said my goodbye and decided to poke some fun at him, "have fun with Monika's forwardness."

"And you have fun talking in front of people."

After Ryan left me, I went back to relaxing in the sunshine. As I sat looking into the clouds I had a peculiar thought, I wanted to make some wooden figurines for everyone, as a little gift. I rolled off to the grass under the bench. I grappled a mental image of each of them from my mind and started going to work. The small figurines were perfect, almost exact replicas of them, besides their height of course. Each of the figures perfectly captured each members greatest eye grabbing attribute. Ryan's emotionless eyes, Yuri's breasts, Monika's thighs; though I only added that because of the memes, Natsuki's small stature and her ribbons, Sayori's radiance and adorableness, and finally me, with my long hair that I tie into a ponytail.

I decided to connect Sayori's with mine, the figures arms connected in the middle above their heads, forming a heart symbol with their hands. It was flawless in every way. When the bell rang I rounded up all of the figures and gently placed them into my bag. "It's time." I said woefully.

I walked into the club, all the decorations were already laid out, and trays of cupcakes were on the counter beside the doorway. It was dark, all the lights had been turned off, but there were candles around the room lighting it moderately. I took my seat next to Sayori and Ryan. Ryan had passed out it seemed before I arrived. I could smell the hint of jasmine in the air as I whipped my head around to Sayori. I looked over her shoulder at the pamphlet, "those the finished pamphlets?"

She beamed at me, holding it up, "yep! Monika and I worked really hard on them, they turned out great!"

I acknowledged that they were indeed "great," and asked if I could see one. I opened it up and looked through it. It seemed that Ryan and I would be performing last, Yuri and Natsuki would be starting it off. I handed it back and looked over to Ryan. His hand was keeping his head afloat, but it had begun to slip. I tapped Sayori's shoulder and pointed at him, "Sayori look."

She didn't understand what I was pointing out at first, but she saw his head slowly sliding down his palm. "Oh! Ryan!" She shouted, waking him from his slumber. He removed his arm and smacked the side of his face into the wood.

"Are you okay Ryan?" Sayori asked sympathetically.

"Yeah." He groaned, "I'm just in a bit of pain."

I patted his shoulder, "you ready for this?" He nodded. "And you Sayori?"

"Yep!"

"I'm not, I feel sick."

Sayori leaned over her seat and hugged me, I could feel all of her warmth soothing my angst. "You'll be fine!"

"I don't know about that..."

Within the hour the room began to fill up with curious visitors. Monika had asked Sayori to pass them all pamphlets. Most of the visitors had their eyes all over the decorations in the room. Their sweet tooth had been made love to by Natsuki's and Ryan's cupcakes. We all stood behind the podium. Sayori walked over briskly after giving out the last paper. Monika walked up to the podium and gathered everyone's attention. "Hello everyone! Thank you for coming to the Literature Club's first festival event. If you look at the pamphlet passed out by our lovely Sayori, you'll see the names of everyone who will be performing today, as well as their poem."

Papers began flipping open as they all subconsciously followed her. "Without further adieu, we shall begin." She stepped down and looked to Yuri, "you're up!" She smiled, giving Yuri a jolt of confidence.

"I got this." Yuri mumbled. As she took her stand the rest of us walked to the side of the room to watch with the audience. Yuri started off like she did with us last week, a bit quiet, but as time went on and she found her rhythm, her emotions and emphasis on certain parts became keen and gave a sense of alluring, like she was bringing you into her world. There was however, a couple of people who weren't focusing on her poem, but, her breasts.

Natsuki came up soon after, she was cocky from the get go. Like she said in the game, she was better in front of strangers. Her poem wasn't as profound as Yuri's but the audience felt the message in her writing. The hopelessness she feels on the daily basis, how she feels misunderstood, or how no one listens to her. The crowd applauded the same amount for her as they did for Yuri, resulting in Natsuki shuffling off, a smug grin across her face.

Monika walked up, bringing everyone's attention. Everyone wanted to hear the most popular girl's poem. She read out her very first poem, "Hole in Wall." It confused most of them, they seemed to all have a different feeling about it. She gave a half curtsy, which was followed by a roar of applause.

Sayori, giddy from her performance rushed the stand, nearly knocking the podium on its side. She panicked and held it up, "ehehe... sorry." Her adorable nervous smirk brought a smile to me. She picked her paper up and looked directly at me, a gleam in her eyes. "My poem is called 'Dear Sunshine.'" I couldn't take my eyes off of her, and she kept smiling as she glanced to me. "Thanks for listening!" She said with a heart full of zest. She skipped down to us and rubbed against my arm. I looked down to her and compassionately gazed at her. I covertly grabbed her light hand and gently squeezed. Ryan groaned, his breathes becoming more shallow.

Ryan tossed aside his feeling of trepidation and looked to us all with the gall of a sea captain. Good for him, most of the guys in the crowd had lost interest and were whispering among themselves. Ryan kept yawning through his reading, but he still finished relatively fast. He bowed like he was inebriated. "You're up." He said to me.

I bit down on my lip and drudged over. The pressure in my chest began to rise, I had to urge to throw up. I kept swallowing, pushing it down, but saliva kept building up. I licked my lips and my eyes darted all over the room. "Ahem." I cleared my throat and started to read, I was talking in a higher pitch than normal, but to the audience it was normal. Every line I read felt like a nail being driven into my knee. I got to the very end, and like Sayori, I looked over. "Now, hope for the future is clear." Unlike my voice. "Because you are by my side. Sayori, my love, you're here." I felt hot all over, even though I could feel the cold air touching my face.

All the tension in the room rose as the room was silent, but it was broken by one of the girls in the back going, "aw..." I breathed in and walked over to the others. Yuri had a shocked look on her face, as well as Natsuki and Sayori.

Monika nodded approvingly and walked past me. "At this time we're welcoming any other's who would like to read a poem of their own." Monika looked through the crowd for any participates, but no one budged. "Alright, well the sign-up sheet for the club is over by the cupcakes, feel free to grab another one on the way out." The audience wasted no time, exiting the room. Some of them grabbed another baked good, but none of them even glanced at the sheet. Natsuki growled, ready to pounce on them, but Yuri held her back.

"I'd say that this was a performance well done!" Monika cheered. "Great job you two, I knew you had it in you." She said, directed at Natsuki and Yuri.

"Yeah you guys were fantastic!' Sayori said.

Yuri reluctantly thanked them, Natsuki however, acted cocky, "yeah I know."

Monika looked around the room, "well, we should get this all cleaned up soon. I want to try out the seafood stand."

"It's pretty good Monika." Natsuki said.

I removed myself from the group and went to take down the origami from the walls. As I started collecting paper I felt someone tug on my shirt. "Gaje?" It was Sayori.

I turned around with a fake smile, still feeling the heat all over me. "Yeah? Whats up?"

"I wanted to... thank you, for the poem. It actually made me pretty happy."

"Well I'm glad."

She ground her foot into the floor, "you know... every morning I wake up, the rain clouds tell me what happened last week was fake, that you don't actually love me, tha-"

"Sayori, remember what I told you? The clouds are wrong, don't listen to them."

"I know..." As she recoiled in pain, my eyes were drawn to her lips, my mind screamed at me to go for it. I slowly reached out and placed my hand on her cheeks. She looked up, and I looked her in the eyes.

"If it was fake, would I do this?" I closed my eyes and drove my head forward, connecting our lips. I could hear my heart beats in my head. Her body relaxed, I felt the tension in her shoulders disappear. I didn't want to let go of her, the sweet taste of her lips was filling my heart.

"Jeez get a room you two!" Natsuki groaned behind Sayori. Everyone else was looking at us, I let go of Sayori. She looked up at me embarrassed.

"Heh, sorry." I said.

"Well, well, look at you two, all lovey dovey." Monika commented, walking up to us. I could see Yuri slightly blushing, and Ryan blankly staring.

"You finally did it huh?" Ryan said, tossing out a piece of garbage.

With what had just happened, my mind was cleared of worry, and my perverted side decided to joke around with Ryan. "I mean, we haven't done it yet." Everyone just glared at me, Yuri's eyes widened and Sayori was slightly trembling as she blushed hard. Natsuki groaned again and walked away. I figured I might as well double down, "I mean... yeah. We haven't done it yet, but I'm open to it..."

"Gaje shut up!" Ryan shouted, "oh my god..."

"I didn't think you were so open Gaje." Monika added, her hand to the side of her face.

Sayori began to murmur to herself as she pushed her fingers together, hard. "D-do it..? I..."

"Isn't t-that a bit soon Gaje? I mean you two... you just started dating." Yuri asked.

"We've been dating since last week." I answered. Truth be told, I did not know whether or not it would be too soon, it depends on both of the people. I don't really care either way, I just wanted to be next to her.

Sayori had shutdown, her face caught between a smile and frown. The blush across her cheeks had grown larger. _She's broken... That's what he said. Shut the fuck up. Okay_... _I'm sorry_.

I shook my head and tried to change the subject. "Anyways! I made some gifts for you guys." I rushed over to my bag and started placing the figures on a desk. "Ta-da!" I looked to them for a reaction, they all seemed pretty dumbfounded, save that Sayori was half paying attention.

Monika grabbed the figure I made of Ryan, "wow... you really got his dead eyes."

Natsuki stumbled out of the closet, curious as to what the gift was. She picked up her own figure and furrowed her brows. With a glare, that of a devil, she began bickering, "are you trying to make fun of my height!?"

"Yes." I said back, "no, Natsuki, it's meant to be accurate, it's who you are.

"You could've made me the same height..."

I rolled my eyes and handed Yuri hers, she was reluctant to take it. "I can't... it's too much of a nice gift, I can't accept this."

"Yuri, either you take it or I'm going to be terribly saddened..."

"O-oh! N-no, I'll take care of it."

Sayori seemed to have had finally cooled off from that fiasco prior to this. I picked up the set figure of her and me. "Sayori." I moved the figure to her hands, and she held it in her palms. "To further prove that this is real, and that I do in fact love you, take this. If you ever get those feelings again, just look at this, and know that this love between us, is true."

She didn't say anything in return, just shyly smiled at me and gave me a hug. I could see a small shimmer in her eyes from the tears welling up. She quickly rubbed them away and smiled again. "Thank you."

"You're welcome..."

She walked away, taking the figure to her desk. I looked over to Ryan and Monika. Monika brought the figure to her eyes, "why are my legs so big?"

Because of the memes. "Are they?" I asked looking around the sculpture, "I didn't notice."

Ryan chimed in, a smooth entrance, "I think it looks beautiful, just like you."

Monika's eyebrows raised as she blinked, "heh, getting a bit cocky there Ryan." She looked to the figure again, "but you know... it is beautiful. Thanks Gaje."

As she retreated to her desk to put it away I looked to Ryan. "Smooth."

"I'm just speaking the truth Gaje."

I heard a light squeal from behind me, Sayori had at some point snuck back over. "Did you see Monika's face, you two are so adorable! Are you two dating!?"

Ryan awkwardly answered back, "uh... I mean, not yet..."

Sayori gasped at his answer, "why not!?"

"I don't know."

"Do you want me to talk to her?"

I smirked at Sayori, Ryan was caught between a rock and a hard place. He tried to keep calm and collected, "no, I can do it. I'm... just waiting for her to be ready."

I hopped in with Sayori, "what do you mean ready Ryan? Look at her, ask her on a date already, c'mon! Do it, do it, do it."

Sayori joined in with me, "do it, do it, do it."

"Alright, alright!" He moaned, "I'll do it." He turned to walk away and I looked down at Sayori.

"Good job."

* * *

Inching over to Monika's desk I noticed her still eyeing the figurine. "H-hey, Monika. Do you... want to go out on a, date?"

"A date?" She asked, nearly shattering my confidence.

"Y-yes, a date."

She tapped her shoulder and stood from her desk. "Yeah! Sure." I wasn't expecting a good answer.

"W-wait, really?"

"Yes really. C'mon let's go to the gym, I'm starving." She beelined to the door, "you coming?"

I joined her, but not before Gaje and Sayori got their comments in. "Have fun." Gaje said.

"Yeah, treat Monika well!"

"Yeah, yeah." I said back.

"To the gym." Monika said enthusiastically, as she began slightly running down the hallway. She moved with childlike innocence, it almost made me forget that she was such an aggressive girl.

When I opened the door to the gym I was surprised by the variety inside. The roof had large banners hung from it, with a picture of a food on it. Each banner was over a concession stand of a different category. Monika dashed over to the seafood stand, frantically jumping around, trying to check the menu. I walked up as well, "wow, looks like it's really popular." It was overflowing with customers, there was no way we'd get anywhere at this point.

"Yeah... Natsuki warned me it would be, I just wish I could see what they had." I wanted to be useful, so I attempted to look over as well, but the crowd in front of us made it like a game of "Where's Waldo." I pulled out my phone to text Gaje, asking for his help in the situation. He sent a reply within a few minutes, letting me know it would be handled.

"I'm not really in the mood for seafood." Said one of the students.

"Yeah me neither." Said another.

"Ryan's a dickhead. I'm gonna go home guys."

People, one by one, kept falling out of line, leaving only us left. Monika didn't seem to care how weird it was, she bolted over to the counter of the stand. "Ryan!" Monika gestured me to come over, waving her hand at me. "Look at all the food!"

The man at the counter looked like he was apart of the World Sumo Federation. "What'll you'll have miss?" He asked.

Monika began pointing out food, to which he grabbed and slapped it down on a paper plate. He handed her the plate, "that'll be 15 dollars."

She handed him a 20, "I'm also paying for him as well." She gestured to me with her eyes. I was thankful, but I wanted to be the chivalrous one.

"What for you then sir?" He asked.

"I'll get the... dragon roll sushi please."

The man handed me my plate and added my order to the payment, making it only 17 dollars and 50 cents. He handed back the change to Monika and we both made our way along, climbing the bleachers til we reached the very top.

"Natsuki wasn't kidding, these are really good." She took a large chunk out of her food, a shark-like bite.

"You didn't have to pay for me you know..." I softly said.

"I know I didn't, but I wanted to."

"Well, thanks anyways, you've been a great help ever since I moved out here, and-" I was cut off by something soft against my lips, I looked down, Monika had pressed a fish against my face.

"You really gotta try this Ryan!" I opened my mouth to take a bite out of it, but it was reeled in. "Hey, don't just bite it, I still want to eat it." She ripped off a small chunk of meat and placed it on my plate. I popped it into my mouth, it was dry, but the spices made up for the bland taste.

Monika and I both finished our plates, she stretched her arms out. "I could go for a nap right about now." She leaned on my shoulder, "if only I had a blanket..." I took off my vest and draped over her legs, bringing a smile to her face. She closed her eyes.

"Are you watching me? That's a bit creepy Ryan." She softly chuckled.

"Sorry, it's hard not to... when you look so beautiful sleeping." I didn't think I could be so forward, but I managed to speak my mind. Her mouth cracked into a larger smile. Her hair was covering my shoulder like a velvet rope, her soft breathes drowning out all other sound.

I looked down to the floor, Gaje and Sayori were in one of the lines. Gaje pointed up at me and nudged Sayori's shoulder. Her eyes shot open, a bright shine in them. I raised my hand, nervously waving back.

"Oh, Gaje and Sayori are here." Monika muttered. She giggled, recalling what happened earlier, "the look on Sayori's face when Gaje was talking, priceless."

"Yeah, I can't believe that he said that while everyone was there..." I truly couldn't... Gaje usually kept to himself, though I guess he did act this way only after we became close friends.

"You think they're gonna do it?" Monika blurted.

I sighed to myself, "I have no idea..." I didn't want to talk about it, we were having such a good time. I was anyways.

"I think she wants to." Monika said.

"O-okay..."

"Gaje ever talk about it?"

"Maybe..."

"They're totally gonna." At this point Monika was just taunting me. I slapped my hands into my face, covering my vision. "C'mon Ryan, we should probably get going."

We both exited the school, walking through the archway. We stood on the sidewalk. It was pretty warm out despite the sun almost disappearing behind the horizon. "Well, I guess I'm gonna go home now, I enjoyed our date today." Monika said.

"Yeah. I really enjoyed it as well." I felt the moment was appropriate, I inched over to hug her. She returned the hug and she quickly moved back.

"Goodnight Ryan." She smiled, but unlike the other times, it was beyond just angelic.

"Goodnight Monika." I watched in awe, watching as her hair glowed in the sunlight. I had no idea what we were at this point, friends? Best friends? Lovers? It was all up to her, but I hope for the latter of the three. Following the pattern of the last couple of days I walked home alone.


	17. Trying to Talk

My eyes opened to the figure of Sayori, her pink face, glistening in the dimly lit room. She was sleeping soundly, her quiet breaths the only sound being produced. I lightly brushed her hair, getting a better view of her adorableness. Raising the covers, I stepped out of the bed, making little noise. As I moved out of the room to walk down the stairs, I could hear the wood creak beneath its surface. I shushed it out of compulsion, but realized how stupid I sounded and kept on to the kitchen.

As the scent of breakfast wafted around the room, I could hear a slight rumbling coming from up the stairs. Sayori trudged down in her drowsy state, but was instantly revitalized as she saw all of the food I had prepared. "Breakfast!" She shouted, running over.

With a smile on my face, I gestured to the plates, "take as much as you want."

It felt great doing things for Sayori, like I was sat upon a hill, basking in the warmth of the sunshine. We both grabbed our plates and sat on the couch. She had her legs crossed and was shoveling food into her mouth. I giggled at the sight of a small amount of egg across her cheek. "What's so funny?" She asked. I replied by brushing off the food with a small napkin. She looked at the napkin and giggled, "oh, hahaha."

My mind was focused on today's event, our first real date. For once in my life I was doing what I wanted to, trying to go out more, trying to find people I connect with. I had friends back home, but only Ryan and I ever hung out, not on our computers. "Whatcha thinkin about over there?" Sayori asked.

I shook my head, "oh nothing, just excited for tonight." I grabbed her empty plate from the table and took both of ours to the sink. I looked at her clock in the kitchen, "I should probably go home, Ryan's most likely asleep, don't want him to be late.

"Alright! I'm gonna go shower, I'll meet you guys out there."

I slightly bowed my head and excused myself from the house. When I unlocked the door to my house I was welcomed by a certain puppy's entire body jumping at me. "Hey there Petey-wetey." I caught his paws and danced around with him, until he got annoyed and pulled away. I leaned down and flapped his ears around, before going to Ryan's room.

His door was already partly cracked open, but I pushed it open fully. "Ryan?" I called. I walked closer to his bed, he was halfway off of it. I poked his head, "Ryan. Ryan. Ryan... RYAN!" His eyes twitched with every call of his name.

"No... please." He pulled the covers over his face and rolled over. I wasn't keen on wasting time today, I snapped my fingers, pulling him out of the bed. He stood against the door, like a piece of wood. "Can you at least wake me up..." I could barely understand him with his face mashed into the wood.

I clapped my hands, giving him a jolt of energy. "I brought you some breakfast from Sayori's, it's on the counter downstairs."

He lazily raised a thumb, giving me the okay. I grabbed my change of clothes and walked to the living room, where I found him hunched over the counter, a barren plate and orange juice all over his upper lip. I locked the door, then shut the gate and we moved on to pick up Sayori for our party of three. As we crossed the street I realized I had forgotten to ask Ryan about yesterday. "Hey, Ryan, how'd it go with Monika after we left?" Sayori's head perked up as well to hear his response.

"It was nice... we hugged." He responded as he remembered the past event.

"Nice." I grabbed a couple loose strands of hair and tucked them behind my ears. I glanced towards Sayori, "hey... what do you think about a double date?"

"A double date? Where else will we go?"

I chuckled, "I mean us and another couple."

"Oh!" She blurted, sudden realization hitting her, "but with who?" I pointed to Ryan and her eyes widened, "oooh! that's a great idea! Will you ask her Ryan?"

Ryan recoiled from the suddenness of her questioning. "I-I mean, if she agrees to go..." He was staring at the ground, deep in thought.

"Then that's that." I said, "let her know we're planning on leaving at six, but we could leave as early as 5:40 or somewhere around there. Depends on when we leave the club today."

"A-alright..." Ryan responded, writing down a reminder in his phone.

We passed the entrance to the school, I opened the doorway to the courtyard after parting ways with them. I took up my usual perch of the bench, relaxing on the bench, the light droplets of water cascading against my neck. I felt the bench slightly increase in weight, my eye opened to check the cause, "hey Yuri."

"Morning Gaje, beautiful day so far wouldn't you say?" Her hair sparkled with the light, her smile bringing life to her eyes.

I looked up at the sky, "that it is." My eyes shot back to her, "so we're back to reading, yeah?"

"If you don't mind." She opened the book, flipping through pages. When she stopped there was a small bookmark barely protruding out of the top, it had a large eye in the middle of it, it was a Portrait of Markov bookmark. She planted her index finger on the area we stopped and we started silently reading together. The book we were reading wasn't particularly something I cared for, but Yuri liked it, and I didn't want to sadden her; I already pitied her enough. She closed the book, the bells time nearing, "I love this book, I can't believe that he really threw us for a loop with that secret betrayal."

"Yeah, I wonder if he'll tell us why Jaulk killed Byron, he was my favorite character..." I looked off to the side in feign sadness.

Yuri got to her feet, it was still strange to me that I was taller than her, from the game I always thought she was six feet, but she was only five foot five, two inches shorter than me. "Tomorrow then, we'll find out. I'll try not to read ahead, but the temptation is almost too much." She looked full of joy and anticipation.

"Tomorrow." I said.

Ryan eventually came out to meet me at his scheduled time, like I was his grandfather at a retirement home. He managed to ask Monika out and she agreed, which made me feel a lot better, it's not that I didn't want to be alone with Sayori, or maybe it was; I had no idea, I could never read my feelings. A few hours later I met up with them all in the club room. Everyone was already in their usual positions. Sayori lit up as I walked into the room. The night prior when I slept over she told me that I had meant the world to her, and I was seeing it now more than ever, and of course I thought the same of her.

"Hey guys." I sat down beside Ryan and her. Ryan was watching some videos on his phone. We weren't doing anything, Monika had let us all know we would be taking a break today. I looked back to the closet and turned to Sayori. "hey, I'm goin to finish reading with Natsuki alright?"

"Okay, what are you going to read? Parfait girls?"

I nodded, "yeah."

"That's a good one, I still have the entire set in my room."

"No spoilers!" I said as I stood up.

"Well, after Strawb-"

I quickly shuffled away, "la la la I can't hear you!" I took my hands off my ears and giggled as I opened the closet. Natsuki was sat up against the wall reading her manga. "Hey Nat."

She slowly peered over to me fumbling with her book. "Oh, h-hey Gaje, what do you need?"

"Just came in to see if you wanted to finish reading."

"R-really? I'd love to! I mean… if you want to, doesn't matter to me." She pretended to not care, the charade she tries to keep up. I didn't know why she attempted to still wear that mask.

I rolled my eyes and started to sit, "scooch over."

"Don't just put your butt in my face!" She shouted.

"Shut up." I said sitting.

She looked at me for a moment, angrily pouting, but it turned to a blush as she realized how close we were. Quickly she snatched up her manga out of the box set and placed it on her lap. "W-where'd we leave off?" She kept flipping through the book, black and white images blurring past.

"I think where they were fighting th-"

"Oh page 73?" She cut me off.

"Y-yeah, I believe so."

Scenes flew by in a flash as we moved through the story, Natsuki had a wide grin on her face the entire time, she truly loved this series. My mind poked at me, reminding me of something I had set aside: Natsuki's father. I was still unsure how to talk to her about it, if I asked her straight up, she might be reluctant to answer me. But, if I wasn't adamant enough she'd avoid saying anything about it.

"Natsuki?"

"Huh?" She cocked her head to the side, her small fang showing in her agape mouth.

"Can I ask you something... concerning your weight."

"What's wrong with my weight!?"

"I mean… you're a little on the unhealthy side." I was trying to be on point as much as possible, but I didn't know the words to use.

"W-what're you talking about, I'm perfectly healthy."

"Do you eat everyday? All three meals?"

 _I used to not even eat all three meals, this line of questioning is dumb._

"S-sometimes."

"Only sometimes?"

"I mean, some days I skip breakfast. I get here pretty late sometimes. Why do you even care!?"

"I care, because you're my friend."

"But you couldn't tell me about you and Sayori!?"

I raised my eyebrows in surprise, "wow."

"I-I'm sorry, I was just-"

"No." I raised my hand, "it's fine, I should've told you that day, but Sayori and me agreed not to. She thought it would add to the fun, I did too, but, everyone except Yuri figured it out beforehand so…"

"I-it's not your fault. I was just, taking out my anger on you... Monika told me I had to get better at that." We let that conversation fizzle out, it just wasn't time yet it seemed, or I didn't try hard enough. The awkward silence started to marinate in my mind, I couldn't stand it. My ears started making a ringing noise that infuriated me, to counteract, I started humming the theme to Doki Doki. This brought a new energy to my mind, drowning out the high pitched whine.

"Are you humming?" Natsuki asked.

I snapped out of my trance, "yeah, I don't like silence, it annoys me."

I looked down at the last page, each of the girls had gotten what they wanted, but it made me think otherwise. I questioned having the story end on such a happy note, though it was only the third volume. She closed the book gently and slid it back in place. "Well, I guess we'll finish the rest later, don't read ahead!" She prodded my cheek with her index finger, making it jiggle. She retracted instantly, mumbling, "sorry."

"I won't." I said. "I swear." I walked back out of the closet, meeting up with Ryan and Sayori. "You going to stay a bit again Ryan?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, well." I turned to Sayori, "guess more time for us."

I glanced at Monika, grinning, "well, enjoy your time Ryan."

Within the hour Sayori and I had arrived at her house, "so what should we do to kill the time?" I asked.

"I don't know…" She replied, setting down her things.

"You and me both."

I sat on her couch, lazily staring at the room. "What time does the skating rink close?"

"I think it said nine, I can check again though."

"Nah, it's fine, I don't think we'll be there for that long."

"Are you gonna wear your uniform?" She asked.

I looked down at myself, I don't have any other type of clothing besides this and my summer-esque wear. "Uh… no. I have some clothes at home I can wear, I'll probably head over in about 20-25 minutes."

"I bought this comfy brown jacket last time I went to the mall, its so soft! I think I'll wear that."

"You know how to skate right?"

"Not fully. But I won't fall!" Her cheeks were slightly puffed out, her uncertainty apparent.

"I'll catch you if you do." I smiled and kicked my legs up on the table.

Sayori plopped down next to me, hands on her lap. I would occasionally glance in her direction, but she avoided eye contact each time. I noticed that she had started twiddling with her thumbs. She seemed off, like something was on her mind. I was going to ask if she was okay, but before I could she spoke up. "S-so… can we… talk about what you said, yesterday?" She asked, her soft tone bringing concern to me.

"What I said?"

"Yeah, you know…"

I scanned through my mind, trying to remember what she was talking about. "You're going to have to remind me, I can't recall."

"The… d-doing it, thing."

"Oh… well, alright, if you really want to. I was just kidding about that y'know?"

"O-oh… alright then." She disappointedly looked down.

"L-like I said, we can if you want." It felt like I had gotten swimmer's ear all over again, the irritation and itchiness on my face.

"Do you want to?" She asked.

"Talk or do it?"

"B-both..." She managed to say.

"Well… talking about it… we're close, and in a relationship, so it won't be as embarrassing. I mean we're already doing that. But, actually doing it… I mean, of course, but I don't want to pressure you or anything."

"You're not pressuring me! Y-you're not… I-I've wanted you to be my first, since middle school."

 _That's some dedication…but, it's sweet._

I looked up to the roof, the air felt heavy. I should've been happy, or relieved, but for some reason there was a nagging feeling in the back of my neck. My tongue was caught, I didn't know how to process that, and I don't think she did either. "W-when..?" I asked my voice slightly cracking.

"What?" She looked over to me, confused.

"W-when do you want to… you know."

Her face was cast ablaze by a vicious blush, "I-"

"You know what nevermind, don-don't say it." I cut her off and waved my hand around.

"Bu-"

"N-no it's fine, really haha, let's just have fun tonight. If something happens… then, something happens." I looked down at my phone, time really flew by. "Well, I should go get ready now, I'll come back over in a bit."

"Okay, I'll go change... see you soon, love you." We both stood up and started walking in different directions.

"Love you too." I sighed and walked out, I closed the door behind me and leaned up against the fence. "So... she wants to give me her first time… god it's like a cheesy anime. But I mean, it makes sense right?" I caught myself giddily imagining scenes in my head as I neared the house. I quietly giggled, "I need to stop, it'll happen... some day."


	18. Date

**_A/N: in about a chapter or two there is going to be some lemon. Now this I the first time I've written anything like this. You can skip it if you want, it's not entirely important to the plot, but it does add more character development. Still want to say thank you to all who have reviewed, especially you shadow._**

* * *

I opened the door to the empty house, Ryan still hadn't returned from school so it was eerily quiet. I walked to the bathroom to comb my hair and find something suitable to wear. When I let my hair down I looked like the lead singer of a heavy metal band. It took me a bit to find something that I liked, but eventually I found it. A black sweater and some black pants, it wasn't colorful, but it was the perfect fit. My neck still felt bare however, so I equipped myself with a long checkered scarf of black and red.

The door clicked downstairs, I yelled out for Ryan, assuming it was him returning home. He opened the bathroom and I held my arms out in a sort of t pose. "So whatcha think?" I asked.

He moved his hands into a camera shape, looking me up and down like a fashion designer. "Lookin' like a snack."

I lightly chuckled and thanked him. "What are you gonna wear? I can get you anythin you want."

"I don't know... surprise me."

I snapped my fingers, I was determined to give him something not over the top, but not tacky. His clothes were replaced by a blue hoodie, a pair of jeans, and some nice black shoes. The blue jacket had a small patch on the shoulder of Monika's face in chibi form. "What do you think?"

He looked at himself in the mirror, "I like it... but this has got to go." He pointed at the symbol.

"Aw c'mon, she'll love it. I promise."

"Are you sure Gaje? I don't know..."

"Look at me. I am de captain now, and what I command is that you leave it."

"Eh..." He resigned, he knew I wasn't going to budge.

"Alright! We should probably get going, it's almost 6:00." I shut the bathroom door, "is she meeting us there?"

"Oh, yeah sorry it totally slipped my mind, she's going to meet us here."

"Oh, al-"

 _Ding dong._

"Well guess she's here." I sprinted down the stairs to open the door. Monika was wearing a grey jacket, some beige pants, and her regular school leggings. "Hey Monika, come on in, we're just about to go pick up Sayori."

"Oh okay, thanks. I like the scarf, it really matches your... eccentricity."

I glanced down to the cloth, forgetting it was even there. "T-thanks." I was unsure whether or not she was being genuine, or if she was just trying to take a jab at me. "I'll be right back, Ryan's right there." I rushed to the back and snuck into the laundry room. I picked up my cloak of invisibility and covertly came back in.

"That's a really nice get-up Ryan." Monika said. Her eyes narrowed as she looked to his jacket, "is that... me?" Ryan had already lost the fact that I attached the symbol to him.

"O-oh. Well you see." This was a classic Ryan; he always started sentences like this when he had no idea how to respond. "G-Gaje helped me get some clothes... and I guess, he added it on. Yeah, I know it looks weird."

She moved in closer to examine the patch, "it doesn't look half bad. Gaje has a knack for making things it seems. Besides, I think it's really cute."

Eavesdropping is usually looked down upon, being nosy isn't something people take too kindly to. But I had a duty to protect Ryan, and tease him just as much as Monika has. Curiosity was my major component, and it may have killed the cat, but it also made the man.

"Yeah... maybe you're right." Ryan finally said. "I think it's cute too."

Monika twirled around and headed for the door, "tell Gaje I'm waiting outside, I can't wait." She cocked her head slightly and winked at him. As she shut the door I threw off my cloak and caught Ryan's attention. He wasn't surprised, but he was annoyed slightly.

"I think it's cute too." I said in a baby voice.

"Shut up Gaje."

I shrugged and got to my feet, "time to go." We got to Sayori's house and stopped. "I'll go get her, be right back." I winked in Ryan's direction and closed the gate. Sayori told me that she was almost ready as we left. I rang the doorbell and patiently stood by the door.

"Hi again!" She said jumping out in full force with a hug. I caught her and stumbled back.

"Jeez! Some warning next time."

She let go and placed herself on the ground. "Sorry ehehe."

"Glad to see you dressed to impress just as I." She was wearing the brown jacket she told me about, it had the same color of Monika's hair. She had a cute pair of jeans, and a large white scarf that wrapped around her several times, it was like a lion's mane. And of course, that cutsey red bow.

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know honestly... you prepared to go?" She nodded and we met with the others. Monika and Ryan seemed to have been talking about something, Ryan had a rather large blush against his cheeks. But that didn't mean anything, they could've been talking about bees and he'd still blush.

"Okay, off we go." I shouted. I grabbed onto Sayori's hand and we lead the group. Walking was always nice, the sun had not yet fallen so we had a nice ray of warmth on us. Our shadows below us matched our movements. I'd became more comfortable holding hands with Sayori, the nerves I had died out, and my sweatiness was gone.

We made our way through the market area, the skate rink was just on the other side of the mall. The rink was by itself in the back of the buildings, it looked like it had been abandoned for quite some time.

I opened the door for everyone, when we got up to the counter we saw a man, maybe in his mid-twenties. He had a mullet and a baseball cap with the numbers "23," on it. He slouched over and sighed, "welcome to _Extreme_ Ice, where the ice is always _Extreeemely_ cold..."

I couldn't help but chuckle internally, his monotone voice trying to be enthusiastic got me. I walked up to the counter, "four pairs of skates please."

"Shoe sizes?" His eyes were on a small screen on the corner of his table, he seemed to be watching a baseball game. We each listed off our shoe sizes, and after the game went into timeout he grabbed the corresponding skates. All of us moved over to the rink, it was empty. Though, that was all my doing, I wanted this to be a private arraignment.

We all got our skates on, Ryan and Sayori seemed to be struggling the most with them. Monika had already gone into the rink and was slowly doing laps. Ryan wobbled in behind us as we entered the rink, I could feel the cool air whoosh out.

I looked to Sayori, she was nervously standing still. She moved over to the wall, using it as a crutch. I stood by her side, "do you want me to help?"

"Huh? N-no! I got it, go have fun!"

"But it's no fun if you're not having any."

She pushed off the wall, trying to stand, but tipped over. I reached out and grabbed her arms, saving her from the fall. She pouted, "aw… I thought I could do it." I lifted her up to her feet and made sure her balance was kept.

"Careful Sayori, I don't want you getting hurt." My face contorted into a somewhat somber frown, the idea of her in pain made my heart writhe and distraught.

"I'm sorry…" She mumbled. I pulled her closer to me and planted a kiss on her head, cheering her up. "Can you help me?" She asked.

"Yes I can, c'mon, let's move out to the middle." I skated backwards and brought her out, the cold air that surrounded our hands was fading away. The warmth that emanated from her hands made me feel relaxed. "I thought you said you could skate."

"I said I wouldn't fall. But, ehehe… I guess I already did."

I grinned and pressed her head into my chest, "you don't have to pretend Sayori, just be yourself, I don't care if you can't do something."

"Would you be mad if I said I was planning on this happening?"

I looked at her with brows raised, "I'd be more surprised, I know you're cunning, but to think that far ahead, that's suspicious."

"Ehehe… I might have…"

"You devious, cute girl, you." I pinched her cheeks, "it was a good plan, I liked it."

Her jubilant smile was a perfect cover for her sneakiness. We stood side by side, I was looking down at her feet, "okay, bend your knees, push your feet out slightly."

"G-got it."

"Now push one foot out slightly and push yourself forward." I watched as Sayori began to slide past me, her face was full of excitement.

"I did it!"

"Alright the other foot now! There you go!" I caught up to her side, I slowed down to keep at the same pace. Her legs were getting wobbly, she brushed up against the guard rails and slowed herself down. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just hungry! I'm gonna go see if they have food up at the front."

"Alright, I'll walk you out." I opened the gate, letting her waddle to the table to change into her regular shoes. I looked back to Ryan and Monika, they seemed to be picking up their speed. As they shot by I questioned them. "What's happening!?

"We're racing!" Monika shouted.

"Count me in!" I yelled at them. I caught up to the two of them, we were all aligned, neck and neck. I shot up past them and had the instant thought of a Sonic quote. "C'mon, step it up!" I laughed and kept moving forward, the cold air against my skin felt nice. They were already far behind me at that point, I quickened my speed every so often, which was not a good idea. I was nearing a point of unstoppable movement.

"Gaje, that doesn't look too safe! Slow down!" Monika yelled out. I was too ignorant to heed her warnings.

"You just don't want me to lose." I tried to say, but I was stopped by the wall.

 _ **POOMPH**_.

I spun out after colliding with the plastic guard. My shoulder felt like it had been bashed by a hammer. Thankfully my head suffered little to no injury due to the cushion my hair was. As I spun around like a hockey puck I heard Sayori scream out my name. I lazily dropped my head to the side to see her. She had a small amount of nacho cheese on her cheek which made me smile.

She knelt down by my side and lifted my head onto her lap, "are you alright?"

"Hey there Sayori... yeah, I'm fine, tis but a flesh wound."

Ryan and Monika stood over the two of us, both with concern in their eyes. "You two look funny upside down." I said chortling. I flipped over onto my stomach, lying on the ice. I pushed off the wall and zoomed across it. "Weeee!"

As I left, Monika whispered to Ryan, "is he alright?"

* * *

"Yeah, he'll be alright." I said with no confidence in my words.

Sayori moved from our side, skating after Gaje. When she caught up to him she reached down and helped him up, leading him out of the rink. The pair walked back to the table where upon Sayori laid his head down for him to rest. She took off her scarf and folded it into a small pillow.

"See, he'll be fine." I said.

"I guess. I suppose that means he won." Monika chuckled. "But since it's just us two, how about a rematch... now!"

She shot up ahead of me. "I see how it is" I mumbled. I zoomed over to her as well, I wasn't just going to give her the free win.

It was the standard three laps for us, I gave Monika a run for her money, but unfortunately I tripped up and let her take the lead. She won the race, though not to say I wasn't trying. I gasped as I tried to swallow spit, "I'll win next time."

"Sure you will." She wiped sweat from her brow and started gliding away, "let's go, I'm tired."

Sayori was up against the glass, staring at us, her face flattened out by it. Gaje's face was as well, though he was still passed out. After Monika and I took our seats on the bench to take our shoes off Sayori ran up to us practically bouncing up and down to hear the results.

"So? Who won!?"

I pointed to Monika, giving her another boost to her ego. "I did, of course." She boasted.

"That was awesome! Here, I got you guys a snack." Sayori handed us both a slice of greasy pizza, on a napkin. I reached up for the slice and took a bite, the cheese was perfectly melted. Monika did as well.

"Thanks Sayori." Monika said.

"Still a win in the end." I mumbled to myself.

"Sure it is. How's Gaje doing?" Monika asked Sayori.

She worriedly looked back at Gaje. Her heart seemed to yearn for his well being. "Well… he passed out a few minutes after I brought him over… I tried to feed him some of the pizza, but…" She looked back to him, "he didn't swallow it."

"Hopefully he gets better." The three of us sat at the table. I looked down at Gaje's disheveled body. He was snoring, I could see the small piece of bread stuck to his teeth. Monika took all of our skates and returned it to the man at the front.

"I'm going to use the restroom before we go, we should get him home." Monika said.

"Alright we'll be waiting!" Sayori replied. She seemed to ease up as Monika left, her attention turned to me. "Ryan, can I talk to you?"

"Yeah sure."

She pushed her fingers together making a sort of case. "Does Gaje, ever… talk about me?"

"He always talks about you. Why do you ask?"

"I don't know if he told you, but we've been friends for a long time… since we were kids. And, well I kind of can't believe that it is the way it is now."

"Well he does really love you."

"I know, I know… and I really love him too, but I can't help but feel like I'm ruining it somehow."

"Trust me you're just overthinking it. He always thinks about you and wants to be with you forever."

"But what if it's not forever? I d-don't want to lose him." She looked to Gaje, and his comical snore made a sudden guest appearance. "We… talked about something yesterday… I don't know if he talked about that with you."

"About what?"

Her jaw tensed up, I could see her frantically tapping at the table, tap, tap, tap. "The… next level."

"Oh… what about it?"

"I'm not sure he wants to. He left before we could discuss it further."

"Well, he would only do it if you wanted to. He wants you to be happy, so… If you really want to do it… just tell him."

"Tell him? I-I don't think I can, ehehe… that's, not something I can really say."

"Okay, we can go now, sorry I took so long." Monika saved me from having to endure this conversation. Sayori's somber glare, brightened.

"Okay! Can someone help me get him to his feet?" Sayori and I lifted him off the table, we both draped an arm over our shoulder. Monika held the door open for us, it was dark, the road was barely visible from the stairway. As we walked down the stairs Gaje's breaths stopped and he gasped awake.

"Ah! Oh. Why are you guys dragging me? Are you trying to kill me!?"

"Indeed we are Gaje, your time is up." I said.

"No, we're not." Sayori said, "you passed out, we're taking you home."

"Oh alright, I'm good. I can walk." He removed his arms and shoved his hands in his pockets. "What did I miss?"

Monika jumped into the fray, "well, I won the race between me and Ryan!" She really wanted to rub it in my face that I lost.

"And I ate pizza!" Sayori cheered.

He looked to me, "and what about you? Did you do anything fun?"

"I lost, ate pizza… and that's about it. Goodtimes."

"Well then I guess today was a success, despite the hiccup of me dying." He rubbed out the sand from his eyes, "onward to home."

I opened the gate, we all poured into the house, seating ourselves in the living room. Gaje took his place on the recliner and arched it back. Sayori just stood by his side as Monika and I relaxed on the couch.

"Why don't you sit by us Sayori?" Monika asked. Sayori lightly shook her head, giving Monika some sort of assurance.

"Then, why don't you sit with me." Sayori moved around and sat upon his lap.

"Okay." She happily accepted, sitting in his warm embrace.

Gaje scooted over so she could sit on the seat as well. "Now we both have space." He said with a smile.

"Adorable." Monika commented making Sayori blush softly.

"Look at the two of you, sitting together." I said approvingly, it was nice.

"Ditto to you two." He responded.

I slightly blushed realizing that Monika was sitting beside me. I looked to Monika, she was also somewhat blushing. Gaje reached for the remote beside him on the table and turned on the TV. It was on the same channel from last week, home to the terrible anime that I was watching. "Oh not this show." I moaned. "Change it Gaje."

"Hold your horses." He hit guide and started rolling through, "what do you guys want to watch?"

Monika closed her phone and put in her pocket, "well unfortunately I have to go, so I won't be watching anything."

"Oh alright, have a good night Monika." Gaje said.

"Yeah, goodnight Monika! Don't let the bed bugs bite!"

I stood with her and offered to walk her out, we both moved into the yard under the starry night. "I had a fun time tonight Ryan."

"Yeah, had a lot of fun as well, we should go out again sometime."

"For sure." She stumbled around, digging her heels into the ground. "Hey, so, I know this is kind of the reverse of social norms, but… I like you. A lot."

"I-I like you a lot too." We stared at each other, the crickets had silenced. I could hear my heart jumping out of my throat. Monika took a few steps to me and leaned in close. Her lips were puckered, coming at me like a homing rocket. I moved in as well and met her halfway, our lips connecting. My heart was practically in my mouth, reaching out to her. The roller coaster of feelings urged me to hug her, I brought her into a loving embrace, enclosing us further.

Our lips separated and she looked longingly into my eyes. "Goodnight Ryan." She opened the gate and slowly departed, leaving me in awe.

"Goodnight…" I murmured. I turned to walk back into the house, my mind still mesmerized. Stepping inside I caught an eyeful of action. Gaje and Sayori were not only kissing, but there was a bit of tongue involved. I put my hand up, blocking the sight and walked upstairs.

"Goodnight Ryan!" Gaje shouted.

"G-goodnight." I regretfully replied.


	19. Surreal Insanity

**_A/N: Hello once again, I felt like uploading two chapters. Instead of one every three days as I'm trying to do. The next chapter, which should be out around Friday is lemon, and once again it is the first time I have written anything like it._**

* * *

The bristles that poked out of Sayori's scarf tickled my cheek. The sun was shining through the blinds. The two of us had fallen asleep in the recliner. I listened to the soothing sound of her hushed breathing, it was my favorite tune. Our arms were wrapped around each other, locking us in an elongated hug. Her hair smelt of breakfast funny enough. Fresh breakfast on a cool summer morning, it was sweet and delicious. Her eyes squinted then fluttered open, making me her first sight of the day.

"Good morning, my l-love." I stammered. Saying it felt right, but those words left an awful taste in my mouth. It just didn't suit me.

"M-morning, my love... ehehe, sorry I'm still getting used to this."

"Don't worry, I still can't believe this is actually true."

"Why not?"

I rubbed the sleepy from my eyes, "well... because this is like a nice dream. And, I never had nice dreams, their only purpose was to induce pain. But, you're my dream turned reality."

Her sweet smile crept into my heart, making me feel even more at bliss with this situation. She slightly budged, "I wish we didn't have to move..."

"Me too. Let's just make the best out of what we have." I tightened my grip around her, pulling her in. The room was warm, but there was a light draft constantly hitting us. I closed my eyes once more and nuzzled my cheek into hers.

The wood from upstairs creaked as Ryan started making his way down, yawning and smacking his tongue against his gums. "Good morning you two." He said walking into the kitchen.

We lied still, as if we had been stuffed by a taxidermist. Ryan strolled through the living room and settled on the couch, sipping on a small bottle of root beer. "I heard you guys talking you know? I know you're awake."

The two of us started giggling quietly, I knew Ryan definitely heard that. I raised up, eyes still closed and pressed my index finger to my lips. "Shhh."

"You guys do anything interesting last night?" It surprised me Ryan actually asked something like that, he usually strayed away from any of that talk. Sayori's back tensed up from his question, I slowly ran my hands around her shoulders.

"It's fine." I said comforting her. I sat up and glared at the coffee table, then to him, "not really. Besides what you walked in on last night. If anything I should be asking you that question. What happened between you and Monika out there?"

His head shifted away from my gaze, I caught him in his own trap. "O-oh, nothing happened."

"Oh yeah, yeah. Nothing at all... yep, I see. If you say so. I see that look on your face, and I call... BS!" I could see his face heating up, assumingly from recalling the affair.

He brought his hand up to scratch the back of his neck. "We just k-kissed, alright?" That comment kicked Sayori out of her drowsiness, she whipped up in front of me, her hair smacking against my face, causing my eyes to water.

"You kissed Monika!? Who initiated it!? Tell me!" Her hands were out by her face as she moved them frantically. I slowly grabbed ahold and lowered them.

"Okay, calm down Sayori. It's not that serious."

She whipped around to me, "what do you mean!? This is huge!"

"That's not the only thing." I murmured, questioning why I had let the words escape me.

 _Why?_

Ryan facepalmed and looked down, "good one Gaje..."

Sayori looked at me, a queer expression, she had no clue to the underlying meaning. Her innocent and delightful mindset made my heart flutter. "It's nothing Sayori." I said.

"C'mon... you can tell me." She donned her puppy eyes, wringing out my hearts strength of resisting. I leaned in and whispered some random mess, trying to escape telling her the true definition. "Oh! Okay!"

Ryan looked to me with a shocked expression, like I had just murdered a cat. "W-what? What did he say?"

"He told me not to tell... ehehe..."

Ryan huffed and fell back to the couch, "wow. What an interesting turn of events."

I cut into the conversation, "anyways. What time is it even?" I raised my buttocks off the couch to reach my hand into my pocket. "Oh, it's only seven, we have plenty of time."

"Oh I should go change then!" Sayori said, crawling out of the chair. "I'll meet you guys out there as usual. See you in a bit!" She opened the door to leave, but turned back to me with a hesitant glare. She skipped over to my side and whispered into my ear. "Will you come to my house after school?"

"Y-yeah." I said back.

"Thanks! Okay see you soon!"

"Bye Sayori." I blew her a kiss as she walked out of the door. I had more room to prod Ryan about his encounter with Monika last night. "So..." I cockily grinned. "You kissed. Like, on the lips? Or did she kiss you on the forehead, or somethin?"

"I-it was on the lips." He mumbled, still blushing like always.

"And? How did it feel? I need details Ryan."

His eyes scoured the room, as if the answer were hidden on the walls. "When we got outside, she said she liked me. And I said I liked her back, then she came at me, lips puckered and... we kissed. It was... amazing."

I slapped my hands down on my knee in anguish, "just amazing?" My eyes bulged out of their sockets as I widened my glare, I could feel them twitching.

"It was like my heart was dancing with hers. It's hard to explain..."

"It's not the kiss Ryan." I said reminiscing about my first kiss with Sayori. "It's that connection with the person you love. Like you've just set off a million fireworks. You're sinking in a pool of jelly and it feels... so **fucking good**!" He stared confusingly at me, he knew what I was saying, but the intensity of my words was quite sudden.

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

I was becoming restless, my body felt the urge to move, to jump, to run. I shot off the chair and groaned loudly as I stretched my arms. "Okay I'm leaving! I can't take it anymore!" I moved to the door and slammed it shut behind me as I ran into the yard.

* * *

I looked at the door, Gaje may have slammed it close, but the force behind it popped it back open. "Okay then…" I walked over and softly shut it. "Guess I'll go get ready." I rushed back to my room and got dressed. I finished brushing my teeth and went to walk down the stairs but was stopped as I heard a high pitched whine come out of Gaje's room. Petey seemingly shut himself in last night.

I opened the backyard for him and he jolted around, rolling in the grass like he was on fire. "Man, you are just like Bodie huh." Bodie was one of the dogs I had before all this. I stepped into the kitchen and grabbed a quick snack before I made my way out the door. Opening the door I found Gaje huddle in the corner of the doorway.

His head darted in my direction, "why hello there. I uh, didn't... go anywhere." He got to his feet, "I forgot my clothes anyways." He still had on his sweater and pants from the rink. "So I'm gonna, just change." He slipped by me and high kneed up the stairs.

 _Why didn't he just… whatever._

Gaje shot down the stairs, jumping from the second floor to the base of the steps. "Okay! Let's go!" He bolted out of the door and I reluctantly followed him through the gate. He was extremely hyper today, it was rare, but it usually lead to some... intriguing events. As we neared Sayori's home, the both of us spotted her standing in wait. Gaje left my side in a flash, picking her up and running off without me.

"You forgetting about someone!?" I shouted, but it was too late, they were long gone. I sighed and looked down at the ground, I began kicking a small pebble, but stopped as it fell into a crevice on the sidewalk. "There's the red mark Gaje always talks about..." I crossed the street, and at the same time a strange buzzing sensation circled my ears, like a fly was constantly hovering around me.

"Ryan..." It called out, a ghostly voice. "It is me, your conscience."

"My conscience? Is this Gaje?"

I heard it snicker, "maybe... Yes."

"What's up?"

"I'm not gonna be home tonight, Sayori invited me over. And... I think we're, going to, you know."

"Well... I guess it was inevitable."

"Also! Nevermind. I'll tell you at lunch, I'm still kidnapping Sayori as we speak. Just kidding, we're almost at the school, talk to you later!"

As Gaje stopped talking I felt a small cold shiver roll through my head, assumingly him exiting my mind. I shook off the feeling and walked the rest of the way to school. The first couple classes felt off, Monika and I barely said anything to each other, we shared mostly blushing faces and glares. And, when lunch came around she left chemistry exceedingly quick, like something was worrying her.

When I entered the cafeteria Gaje was waiting by the line. He was sporadically tapping his fingers against the wall. Our eyes met and he sprinted over. "Good, you're here! Get your food quickly... actually." He snapped his fingers.

Suddenly everything was pitch black, but then I was in a room. The room was lit by an invisible light source, its brightness comparable to a single candle. I knew this place, it was Monika's room from the game. I could see space out of the windows, large gas clouds and a whirling galaxy. I looked down at the desk in the middle of the room, there was a tray of food on it. I took my seat and picked up the spork, I figured Gaje would show up at some time.

"Now it has come to my attention!" Gaje blurted, phasing through the wall to my right. "That we have not been doing things right. We haven't even solved our most crucial issue, and I haven't taken any time to learn more about this world."

"What issue?" I asked, slurping down some soup.

He raised a hand, shushing me from asking further questions. "Natsuki! But, that's the least of my worries right now, first off! When is everyone's birthdays? Second! My birthday is in a couple of days, and I'm going to be 20!"

I remained silent, allowing Gaje to continue rambling with his nonsensical commentary. I waited for him to stop before I asked, "so, do you want like, a party?" He paced back and forth. He kept his eyes on the ground as he gently caressed his he stopped, and looked to me, his eyes glistening. A single tear drop fell from his eye. It wasn't real, Gaje knew how to cry on command.

"Y-yes, _sniff_ , I do. But, first, I must figure out if my birthday here is the same as back home. It should be, but you never know. April 17th, not any other date. To be honest I don't even know if they have birthdays here."

"I'm pretty sure they do Gaje."

He closed in on me and slammed his hands down on the table dramatically, making the whole thing wobble. "What sick game are you playing at!?" His acting had gotten better, he picked his hands up from the table and moved back slightly. "I... I'm sorry Ryan, it's just, the drugs. You know what they do to me."

At this point I was too confused to even say anything, he wasn't on any sort of drugs, except possibly that Sayori high. I placed my spork on the tray and tried to calmly speak to him. "What are you talking about Gaje!?"

His eyes flared up at me in anger, "what am I talking about!?" I'm talking about life and death! My deep sexual frustrations! They're turning me into a madman!" He grabbed the desk, my tray slipped to the floor, all the food splatted against the wood. He chucked the desk out the window, and consequentially created a vacuum. All the food, Gaje, the tray, and me, started getting pulled out of the room with such force. I only had a split second to reach for the window sill. My fingers were slipping and I could tell I was running out of oxygen. Gaje slowly spinning in space, arms crossed, he was still flapping his lips out in space, but I couldn't hear him. He snapped his fingers and I felt the force exerted on me disappear.

"Anyways." He started. "My birthdays up soon and I want to see if it's the same day. Also gotta figure out this world, and help Natsuki, preferably without killing her father."

We were both on the bench in the courtyard. My body was still adjusting, I hadn't fully processed the events that had just transpired. I looked down at the ground, then to Gaje's expression. I didn't know why he was so calm. "O-okay... sure."

He hopped up, "well I'm off to the library, enjoy the rest of your day." He started walking towards one of the entrances and vanished. He wasn't kidding when he said the frustration was making him mad...

Club time came around, Monika and I still didn't really get to talk. I walked up the stairs alone, the building was silent. Everyone had already got to their clubs or went home. When I reached the top of the steps I saw Monika standing against the wall. When she saw me she had a somewhat sorrowful grin. "Hey Ryan... can we talk?"

"Yeah, sure. Are you okay?"

She pushed herself off the wall, "yeah, I'm fine. Well, not fine, but it's nothing bad." She started walking down the hall, and I followed. She suddenly stopped and 180'd to me. "I'm sorry I was avoiding you earlier today, it's just... well I've never felt this way." Her lips were slightly parted as she struggled to say what she wanted. "I wanted to ask you, w-what, what do you like about me?"

My mind was blank, dealing with Gaje earlier and now this? It was surreal, and it was confusing as all hell. I had to say something, and I wanted to say something. I loved her, but at that moment I was lost. I reached into my heart, pulling out my innermost thoughts. "Well, I… like how you care for others... and how you accepted me into the club with open arms." I brought her into a loving embrace, bringing my arms around her shoulders. "And… you're the most beautiful person I've ever had the privilege of meeting. There's no words to describe how thankful I am to have met you. And without you, I'd still be wasting my life." Countless things I could have said, yet these were the few that crept their way out from my vocal chords. I let go of her and looked to her eyes, searching for a response.

Her lips quivered as she forced them into a smile. "I-I'm glad… I'm sorry for being so dumb, I… I just thought that you only liked me because of my popularity. That's just how it's been."

I looked her in the eyes, "I like you for _you_ , not because of your popularity. You know that I love you, right?"

"Y-yeah, I know. I do too…" She reached out for my hand, her petite fingers curled around mine. My heart was already thumping wildly, but seeing her angelic smile furthered it's erratic pounding. I don't know what came over me, and it was something that I didn't usually have the courage to do. I kissed her on the lips, surprising both her and me. Her smile dropped, becoming an embarrassed grin. "W-we should probably get going… don't want the others to worry."

I opened the door for the two of us, when we came to, Gaje was standing at the podium and the others were sat in the first two rows. Natsuki's head shot to us, "don't come in!" She yelled, bringing Gaje's attention to

"Ah good! You two. Come in, come in." He rushed us to our seats then returned to the stand. He was tapping a pen against the desk, like he was suffering from withdrawal. "Okay! So, I was just explaining to everyone that my 20th birthday is coming up soon, and it's on a Tuesday. So instead of having a party then, we're having it this weekend to celebrate."

Monika's hand rose, "y-you're turning 20?"

Gaje looked around, brows raised, "yeah, I know it's weird, 20 in high school. Let's just say I kind of had to repeat elementary school. That's where me and Sayori met."

"Guilty!" Sayori chimed in.

Monika's hand lowered, "oh..."

"Now." Gaje looked us over, "anyone else have a question?" His eyes opened darted to Yuri behind us. "Ah yes, Yuri?"

"W-what do you do... at a party?" She quizzically asked.

"Talk, play games, that sort of thing... You can also swim, I have a pool at my house you can use."

Op

"A-alright, thank you."

"Anyone else?"

We all looked around at each other, Natsuki was on edge, her face as red as Sayori's bow. "Yeah I have a question!" She barked.

"Yes Natsuki?"

"Can I go read my manga now!?"

"Oh… yeah I guess, I see you don't care…" He covered his face and sobbed into the podium, Sayori sadly looking on.

"Natsuki…" Sayori mumbled.

"What!? He's faking it! Look at him!"

"Natsuki c'mon… this is really important to him."

"I-urgh! Fine. Do you want me to make a cake or something!?" She looked to the side, avoiding Sayori's sight.

Gaje jolted up, "yeah sure!"

"What!? See!?" Natsuki growled. "I'm done!" She scurried to the closet and slammed the doors. The others all looked to Gaje for any other additions.

"T-that is all." He said, resigning from the stand. He took the seat Natsuki was at and started conversing with Sayori.

"That was different." Monika mumbled. "I've never seen him so… energized."

"Well, you see… he may be excited about something happening later." I said.

"What's happening later?" She had a puzzled look on her face. I don't know why I didn't expect her to ask, I brought it upon myself.

"You know… him and Sayori… _alone_."

She still had no clue what I meant, it was like her teasing mentality and ability to read innuendos like a true pervert jumped off of a cliff. "I don't understand, is she making him some special dinner?"

I groaned and leaned in, "they're going _sigh_ … to have sex."

A blush cast upon her cheeks as she slightly recoiled. "Oh. W-well then. That's, good for her, or him, or both of them, I suppose."

"Hard to believe they're already that far into their relationship." Yuri jumped in, making Monika jump up.

"Ah! Oh… jeez Yuri, you scared me there."

"S-sorry…" she relaxed back into her seat.

"Well, um… yeah, that's why he is weird right now." I said.

Yuri poked at her lips, "I guess that explains earlier then. He was telling me some analogy about a snake slithering into a hole. I didn't know what he meant. Comparing his other euphemisms, this was a poor effort on his part."

Oh my god Gaje...

Monika chuckled nervously, "s-should we really be talking about our friends' sex lives?"

"Y-yes you're probably right." Yuri said.

I looked over to the couple, Gaje was joyfully patting his hand against the desk in arrhythmic beat. Monika peered back to Yuri, "b-but... if Gaje is open about it, I guess it's fine."

You just want to gossip...

"I suppose." Yuri agreed.

"So, did he say anything else?"

"No, the analogy was it."

"How about Sayori? Did she say anything to you during lunch or in Mr. Derval's class?"

Yuri shook her head, "Sayori only talks about how happy she is, or food. The only time I can remember her doing something strange was last year. I saw her huddled over in her locker, when I got closer I saw her kissing her phone."

"Kissing her phone?"

"Mhm, she had a picture of Gaje and her in middle school as her wallpaper."

"Aw... that's adorable."

"I thought it was a bit odd, she panicked and tried to convince me she saw a bit of chocolate on the screen."

I thudded my head against the desk and moaned. "That's nice..." I said.

"Are you alright Ryan? You don't look too hot." Monika asked.

Yeah I'm just peachy.

"Yeah, it's just a little warm... that's all."

Monika and Yuri's conversation died down, but they were still going on about it. I looked to the windows, in the corner of my eye I saw Natsuki peering out of the closet, staring at Gaje and Sayori. Our eyes met, and she quickly gestured for me to come over. I sighed, expecting more painful emotions.

"What's up Nat?"

"Shut the door, I don't want them to notice." I did as she asked and sealed off the entrance. I turned back, her cheeks were puffy, like a squirrel's.

"You okay?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just needed to ask you something."

"Okay?"

"What's Gaje's favorite flavor of cake?" The innocence of the question calmed me, but I was still on my toes.

"I would say... chocolate."

"And what about for a gift, what do you think he'd like?"

"I'm not sure... he has everything he wants. I think the cake would be the best thing."

"Alright... I guess that's all, thanks Ryan."

"No problem Nat."

"You know, just because I don't say anything about that doesn't mean I'm not angry at you guys for calling me Nat." She opened the closet and crossed her arms, an angry frown across her lips.

I sat down by Monika again, hoping to talk to her about normal things, but she and Yuri were still preoccupied. The day began winding down and the club came to its end. Sayori, Gaje, and I all walked home together, but we split off as we got to Sayori's.

"I'll see you later Ryan." Gaje said. Sayori waved from behind him as they both receded from view.

I raised my hand and forced out a goodbye. With Gaje gone I had all the time in the world to text Monika, without interruption. I was exhausted, but I was determined to stay awake. I sent a greeting text to Monika and instantly passed out as I waited for her response.


	20. Beauty, Bliss, Bed, Love

**_A/N: Well here we are, the finished result of my first sexual writing. Many hours of me just shitting on myself for the writing, but my friend convinced me it was fine. So... here you all are._**

The two of us walked into her home, kicking our shoes off and dropping our bags at the door. I jumped onto Sayori's couch, feeling a rush of air pass across my face. I stretched and laid my head against the armrest, staring in her direction. She looked rather uneasy, like she had something to say to me. "Are you alright Sayori?" I asked.

Her head shot up, the expression previously there replaced by a smile, "y-yeah I'm okay!"

"Alright..." I rolled over and stretched out my arms.

"G-Gaje?"

"Yes?"

"Could we... go upstairs?"

"Oh, yeah sure." I got off of the couch and walked over to her. She turned and we began moving up the stairs. My heart started to race as my eyes veered over to her butt, I could see up her skirt, her pink panties showing.

She opened the door for us and hopped into her bed. Just like the day I came over to express my feelings, I sat on the edge of it. I turned my head, she was sitting with her knees pulled in to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. "So. What's on the agenda then Say-Say?" I looked around at her room, Mr. Cow and Mr. Bird, in their usual spots. Her slightly torn calendar was always brought a funny thought into my head of her accidentally ripping it while trying to flatten it out.

She made a noise as if she was about to say something and I turned to face her. "W-well... I wanted to ask, ehehe... d-do you..?"

I raised a brow at her sudden nervousness, "do I what?"

She buried her face in her knees, a bright blush against her cheeks. "Do you want... want to... h-have sex?"

I sat in a short period of pure thoughtlessness. "I... w-what?"

"Do you want to have s-sex..?"

I blinked and stared, of course I did. I wanted to feel every inch of her body, not just out of lust, I wanted to be connected with her, and this was the pinnacle of that very thing. "Y-yes... I, I do." I moved to the middle of the bed just in front of her. I gave a smile of assurance, her nervousness of asking seemingly vanishing.

"O-okay then, let's... let's do it." She unhinged her arms and her legs flattened on the bed. My penis had apparently already rose to the occasion, grinding against the front of my underwear.

"Okay..." I looked into her eyes, they weren't as bright as usual, the dilation of her pupils had overtaken the beautiful blue color. Talking about doing it and actually experiencing it were two different things, and sure, I talked a big game, to myself that is, but how would I perform? My mind was looking for an excuse to not go through with it, but it couldn't locate one. "A-are you sure?" I asked, instantly answered by her slight nod of approval.

I huffed quietly, moving my hands to her blazer. I pulled the string on her ribbon, loosening her clothing. I took her blazer off and tossed it aside, my heartbeat rapidly increasing as time went on. My blazer tumbled to the floor as well, then my undershirt. It was a bitch removing my pants without looking like an idiot, but eventually the both of us were nearly naked. I looked down to her midriff, it made my heart tremble, and my hands shake with excitement. If this was how I handled just seeing her stomach, I could only imagine how I would react to seeing her fully nude.

"W-well." I chuckled nervously, "t-this is the first step I guess." I used the joke to try to raise my valor, but the tension in my chest didn't change.

"Y-yeah, ehehe..." Her eyes looked me over, eventually stopping at my crotch. "I-is that your..."

"Y-yeah." I said, in an attempt to cut her off, neither of us were having an easy go at this and I didn't want her to feel any more embarrassed.

"Can you... take it out?"

I sat up and maneuvered my underwear off, I was on my knees, my erect member on display for her to see. I was expecting a less than happy response from her, my mind tended to deviate to worst case scenario. But, what surprised me was that she not only seemed to not mind, she reached out and grabbed it. My body recoiled due to the softness of her skin, and the cold temperature of her hand.

"W-what do I do?" She asked, her fingers wrapped around it.

"J-just, stroke it, up and down."

Her hand pumped up and down, each time sending a wave of ecstasy through my hips and stomach. I wasn't expecting it to feel this nice. I don't know if it was because she was the love of my life, or because of the gentle touch of her uncalloused hands, or maybe both.

Her skin kept brushing up against the tip of my dick as she stroked upwards. "S-sayori, I'm pretty close to..." My jaw clenched and my eyes closed.

"S-should I stop?"

"N-no, it's fine." My dick was throbbing, the tip pulsating as I neared my head moved in an unnatural way, the pleasure forcing it to move. "I'm cumming, Sayori." My member flexed and grew, a shot of jizz came out from its tip, like a volcano, more oozed out, falling down the mountain side, covering her hands. My mind was blank, the pleasure center in my brain had been thoroughly taken care of. She put her hand in her mouth, cleaning the semen off of it.

"Okay... y-your turn." My body was still tingly. I closed in next to her and reached around her body to undo the bra strap, it fell down and I threw it to the floor. My eyes were focused on her supple breasts, her small nipples, the dark ring around it. There was no hesitation in my movements, no nerves to deal with. I reached down and squeezed one of her breasts. My mouth took care of the other one, as I rolled my tongue around the areola.

"A-ah." She moaned. "G-Gaje wait."

I looked up to her euphoric expression, "are you alright?"

"Y-yes, sorry. It was just unexpected, you can... you can keep going."

I resumed my playful rolls of the tongue, massaging her nipple, I felt them pucker. My right hand glided against her skin, moving down to her stomach, then curiously creeping its way to her vulva. Her hips somewhat thrust at my touch. I felt her becoming moist as I ran my middle finger along her vagina. I slipped my hand underneath to use all of my hand to its advantage. She cringed back, moaning softly.

I kept my vigorous motions, ensuring that she would climax just as I did. I was determined to give her the same amount of pleasure, and her steadily increasing volume helped encourage it, I knew I was doing something right. My right hand was working overtime, tickling her pussy lips, prodding her entrance. Her juices coated my hand.

"Ah! Ahn! Mmm." Her legs quivered as she convulsed and moved uncontrollably. Though that didn't stop me from fingering her, I kept on.

"G-Gaje! I-AH!" I took my hand out and looked down to her exhausted body.

"I got carried away... s-sorry."

She reached up and hugged me, "it's fine, that was... well. Ehehe... a-amazing."

"We still have yet to um... you know. A-are you ready?"

"Yes, go ahead."

I lowered her down, flat upon the bed and moved over her. I could feel my cock rubbing against the softness of her stomach. I grabbed a hold of my shaft and positioned it near her vagina's entrance."I'm putting it in." I prepared her, while also trying to prepare myself. It pushed in with little to no resistance, her wet pussy acting as a lubricant. I wasn't expecting to slide in so easily, and as a result I went in fully.

"Ah!" Her hands were above her chest, her wrists pushed against each other.

"S-sorry! I didn't expect to..."

"No! You're fine, I just... keep going."

"Okay." I started pulling out, then thrust back in, slow at first, to develop my own rhythm. I could feel each individual groove of her walls massaging my shaft, only adding to the pleasure. The warmth encasing me was like a wormhole of pure bliss and euphoria. Being inside of her was all it took to cause me to reach near climax. Both my mind and penis urged me to let loose, I quickened my pace. "I'm gonna cum again... I can't hold it in."

She didn't answer back with words, she pulled me down, against her bare skin, wrapping both her arms and legs around me. It drove me wild. I pushed in as deep as I could, my breaths getting more hoarse, "I'm-rngggh!' Semen began pumping out of my dick, but I still kept thrusting, my body begging for me to stop, but I needed more of this feeling. My muscles twitched, my thrusts no longer of my own volition. The tip of my dick had gone numb, but the warmth of my cum inside of her was still felt.

I fell down, on top of her, completely exhausted. "Hah... hah..." I cocked my head to the side, looking to her agape mouth, she and I both were depleted of all energy. She turned her head, I moved in and we started making out. "I love... I love you." I gasped out.

"I love you too..." Her radiant and glistening smile cooled me down. I rolled over, both of us laying naked side by side. She rolled over taking my place, her head gently resting on my chest. "I-I'm glad you were my first." I smiled with what little energy I had.

"I'm glad you were my first as well. And I want you to be my only." My eyes fluttered closed, the throb of my heartbeat the perfect metronome to fall asleep to. _Doki, doki, doki, doki_.

I came to a few hours later, the entire room had grown dark, I could still see Sayori's head comfortably cradled by my chest. I moved my hand down to her back and nuzzled my cheek into her head. This was by far, the greatest choice I had ever made in my life. I slowly trickled my hand from her back to her buttocks, then back. For the first time in a long while, my mind wasn't pushing me to dark thoughts, but hopeful thoughts, of the future. Thoughts of marriage, dogs and kids running amock, of doing this again. I closed my eyes once more, I had no plans of moving out from under her.

* * *

I awoke with my phone against my face, it's heat preheating my cheek. I flipped over on my side and the phone to the bed, fully bringing me out of my drowsy slump. I turned the brightness down and stared down at the screen, a copious amount of messages flooded the screen, most of them from Monika. They had an aura of concern behind them, I had forgotten that I messaged her early that afternoon.

"Hey Ryan! How are you?" Then the next, "Hello?" Then her immediately thinking the worst, "are you alright!?" I kept scrolling through, entertained, but also overjoyed by her concern.

I started up my own message, to apologize. "Sorry, I passed out earlier." A few moments later I felt my pocket buzz as I walked out of the bathroom.

"Oh alright, you had me worried for a sec!"

"Well, I'm glad you care for my well-being." I replied.

I walked through the hallway, glancing into Gaje's room. It was pitch black so I couldn't see anything exactly besides his desk. I crept into the room, holding my phone up for light. He wasn't anywhere to be found. I supposed he was still over at Sayori's house, or he was downstairs. My phone buzzed again, Monika sent another picture, this time of a muscular anime character flexing and yelling, "goodnight!"

"Goodnight Monika, see ya tomorrow." I shoved the phone into my pocket and shuffled downstairs. I heard snoring as I got to the room, but it was just Petey breathing. His eyes darted to me and he huffed. Realizing that I was alone, once again, I figured I could finally do things I've always wanted. Such as things I normally did, but by myself. I grabbed a snack and a bottle of soda and plopped back onto the couch. I munched on some chips and took a swig of my drink, relaxing comfortably. I hadn't taken time to relax in a while, with everything that had happened.

Petey began to whine, from what I learned from my calls with Gaje a long time ago, this meant that he was either hungry, or he had to poop. In this situation, it was the latter. I opened the back door and walked out to the yard with him, taking a seat in the plastic beach chair by the door.

I stared up at the sky, it was clear, all of space was noticeable. It was much easier to take in its glory when you weren't being forcefully sucked into it. A light brush of air tickled my arms. My head flopped over on its side, bringing my vision to Sayori's house. Her room was dark.

A star shot across the sky, my thoughts began clouding my mind. I got lost in memory.

I love this place, though I do also miss everyone back home, my family. I couldn't help but wonder how they were doing. I sighed and looked into the cluster of space dust, I pressed my head into the chair and closed my eyes. This was my new home, and I was determined to live my life just like I did before. Lazily.


	21. The Day After

When I came to, the next day I had a face full of hair. It tickled my neck every time I adjusted myself in bed. I looked down to Sayori's gentle face. Her cheeks had a natural reddish tint. Her arm was lain across my chest, her bare body was pressed against mine. I lightly brushed her cheek with my thumb. I looked to my right and cautiously reached down for my pants. I got my phone out of them and dropped the pants back down.

It was about seven-ten at that time. I wanted to stay in bed and just lay there with her, but I knew we had to leave. I poked her cheeks lightly while I attempted to wake her. "Wakey wakey Sayori." I rubbed her arm up and down. Her eyes fluttered open, the relaxed expression she had becoming a caring smile.

"Morning." She said soothingly. She remained in her spot. "I hope you're okay with what happened last night."

I leaned my head onto hers, "yeah, more than okay... it was perfect."

"W-we can do it again... if that's okay with you."

I puffed air from my nose, making a light chortle, "you name the time and place." I yawned and rubbed my temples, "unfortunately, we don't have enough time for that right now."

"T-that's okay."

The two of us started collecting our bearings, I grabbed up my clothes and balled them up into my arms. I made my way to the shower and placed my clothes on the sink counter.

Sayori waltzed in as I was preparing the shower, "you don't mind if I... j-join you, do you?"

"I'd be insulted if you didn't." I stepped into her shower, it had a sliding glass door that allowed for a kaleidoscopic image of whatever was behind it. She stepped in with me. The shower wasn't as big as she thought, we didn't have much space between us, but that didn't affect anything.

She and I shared awkward glances as she bent over to grab the soap to my left. "C-can you get my back?" She asked.

"Y-yeah, sure." I grabbed the bar of soap and began scrubbing her shoulders, then down her entire back. I felt my heart jump, I moved closer to her, pressing against her.

I rest my head in the space between her head and shoulder. I let the water wash over us both as we stood quietly. I moved my hand to her stomach and the soap glided up her body. My other hand followed behind, pushing the suds around. She grabbed my hand and brought it up to her breasts.

"I think we have time..." She said smiling at me.

"I guess we do..."

Shower sex, I had always thought it would be incredible, the warm water, the intimate connection, two bodies slapping against one another. Though, I learned that it was not at all as good as the fantasy sounded. The space between us did not allow for as much sexual movement as I thought and I had way less stamina standing than lying down.

The dials squeaked as I cut the shower off. "That... that wasn't as good as I thought it would be." I said.

"I still enjoyed it." Her pensive smile encouraging me.

"Well, then it was great."

After we both dried off I looked over to her poofy hair, it was not able to go very far like mine, but it was just as ragged. I struggled to pull my pants up to my waist, as I pushed my other leg through I looked over to Sayori. "Hey, can you come here for a second?" She walked over, standing right before me. I reached out and poked her nipple. "Boop." To which she returned the favor with a giggle.

"Boop!"

I pulled on my shirt and we both walked down the stairs, with just enough time for me to make breakfast before I left. I handed Sayori the plate of eggs and bacon, the both of us crashed on the couch and scarfed it down. "I gotta go wake up Ryan." I wiped my mouth with my arm, "I'll see you in a bit. Love you."

She waved at me as I shut the door, "bye! Love you too!"

"Ah..." I breathed in the air, it was chilly, yet filled my lungs fully. I walked to the chorus of the birds chirping, the world seemed to be moving slower than usual. Their harmonious chirps a perfect beat for my strut.

I opened the door to the house, Petey greeted me with open paws. "Hey buddy!" I ruffled his head and pushed him down. "Got to wake Ryan!" I sprinted upstairs and opened his door, but he wasn't there. I thought maybe he had stayed over with Monika, but I realized that there was no way he would.

I walked back downstairs after checking all the other rooms, I looked on the kitchen floor then moved to the hallway. The back door was wide open.

"Oh there you are." I saw him passed out on one of the beach chairs. I leaned over and shook his arm, "Ryan? Are you dead?" He swatted at the air, I shook him more violently. "Ryan!"

"Alright! I'm up." He groaned.

He followed me back inside, rubbing his eyes. I produced a plate of breakfast for him and went to change. I finished buttoning the blazer and made my way down, finding Ryan hunched over the counter, a line of orange juice on his upper lip.

"You fully awake now?" I asked.

"Y-yeah, I'm good." He took the last bite from his toast and we headed out for the day.

"I can't believe you slept out there all night!" Sayori gasped. "Wasn't it cold?"

"I actually like the cold weather, so it was fine."

"I like the cold weather too! But only when it snows, you get to wear fluffy jackets, and have snowballs fights, and hot cocoa!"

We turned the corner, passing the red line. "I enjoy all of those things as well, snowball fights and me have a fun history." I commented. "Once, before we met Sayori, I was out with some people, and one of them packed a piece of ice in the snowball without realizing."

"Ow... you weren't hurt were you?" She asked empathetically.

"Nah, just head pain for a while."

"Never really saw much snow where I was from." Ryan commented.

Sayori looked to Ryan with shock, "what!? You're gonna have so much fun come winter, we get a lot of snow!" A couple of minutes later we got into the school, it wasn't as crowded as usual. Most of the students were in the cafeteria eating their breakfast. Sayori hurriedly walked towards the end of the hall.

"I gotta get going! I'm drawing a poster for my class project!" She rubbed her wrists together, her excitement bubbling over.

"Alright, well I guess we'll see you at the club." I said. She ran up to me and kissed me on the lips, then turned to run to class.

"Yeah, I'll see you guys then! Bye!" Her shoes squeaked as she ran away, disappearing behind the corner.

"Yeah... bye." I stared down the hall, even though she wasn't there anymore, I could still feel her presence on my lips. The image of her was emblazoned in my mind. No longer was I thinking about how I could screw something up, I attained what I was trying to get. I felt at peace, finally finding the final screw for my mind and heart.

"Gaje? You good?" Ryan craned his head over, his eyes stared into mine.

"Yeah, I'm good." I shook my head. "Yeah."

"Alright, I'm gonna go, I gotta get to class, so see you at lunch."

I reached out and tapped his shoulder, 'h-hey, before you leave, can I just ask, are... are you happy?"

He looked to the ground in thought, "yeah... I mean, I miss my family. I wish I could see how they are, but, this world is better than that one... so yeah, I'm happy."

"Alright... see you at lunch then."

"Bye."

* * *

I got to my seat, Monika, it seemed, had gotten into the habit of arriving earlier than me. That or I had done the opposite. I put my bag on the desk's hanger and brought out my notebook.

"Mmm mmm mmm..." I heard a humming in my ears. It was a familiar tune, that of "Your Reality." I looked for the origin. It wasn't in my head, it couldn't have been. I looked to Monika, she had her eyes closed. She was the one who was singing the tone.

"Monika? Are you humming?"

Her eyes opened, "yeah, sorry. Was it bothering you?"

"No, no. I just... it sounded beautiful, what song was that?"

"I don't know... it just sometimes pops up in my head."

"Maybe you heard it when you were younger."

"That's a possibility."

I looked forward, Mr. Dire's intense eyes were staring into mine, making me feel uneasy. I slowly dropped my head down to look at the book and "read." My chances to talk to Monika seemed to always be interrupted by some otherworldly force.

Ms. Kiri's class always gave me plenty of time to talk to Monika though, it's not like it mattered if I did the assignments anyways. Ms. Kiri came in, holding a small walking cane, a party hat on, and a lollipop in the corner of her mouth.

"Good evening class 3D, I have just been told by a very handsome young man that it's someone's birthday today. And that special someone." She climbed on her desk and started doing an old fashioned tap dance. "Is me!"

"Happy birthday Ms. Kiri." The student council president, Jubilee, said.

"Why thank you darling Jubilee, one day you'll also get a boyfriend!" She finished off her tap dance, her left shoe slipped and caused her to roll off to the floor. "Goodnight New York!" She said as she passed out.

Jubilee sighed and gathered all the papers beside Ms. Kiri and started passing them down the desk aisles. "Okay everyone, here's the packet for today, do it, don't do it." After finishing she moved to the front and took Ms. Kiri's bowl of candy with her out of the room.

I shifted my attention to the packet, it was a bunch of crossword puzzles for birthday parties. "Welp, another day and more useless assignments." Monika sighed. "I wish she'd actually give us some work, I'd like to learn something in here again."

"I don't really mind it too much." I had already gotten used to classes like this back home.

"But don't you want to learn? You're gonna need this in college."

"I guess you're right, but this gives me time to learn more about you."

"Well, I suppose that's pretty useful information... Fine. Then I want to learn more about you. So you ask a question, then I'll ask you one."

I moved myself so I would not have to strain my neck to look at her. "Alright, what type of movies do you like?"

"Mostly fantasy type, but I like some horror movies too, though we've been lacking in that department for a while."

"I can watch mostly anything, but if I could choose, probably movies with just in general a good story."

"My turn. What question do you want the answer to, but are too afraid to ask?"

I hesitated, my mind had already deviated to the sexual part of my thoughts. I swallowed and looked around, pretending to be thinking of an answer. I nervously chuckled, preparing for my own voice. I did not want to answer, but I could not, not answer. "Do you... think I'm good enough for you?"

Monika's brows perked up, "good enough?" She placed her index against her lips, "I mean... you're not as smart as me, and I am kind of out of your league. So I guess not..." She looked at me with a smile, "I'm just kidding Ryan, don't be sad, yes you're good enough."

"You really know how to get me going, huh?"

"Hah... geez, I didn't think you were into all that humiliation stuff Ryan."

"What do you mean?"

'You said I got you going." She looked at me like I was stupid, her response to me looking stupidly back at her. "Oh my God, Ryan. Do you not know what that means." She began giggling.

"Does that mean something else?"

"It means it gets you aroused!"

I blankly stared, I had said that so many times in my life. "I thought it meant emotions getting riled up..."

"Well, it can mean getting angry, but mostly it means arousal. Alright, next question haha. What do you think about Gaje?"

I had to stop myself from just talking without thinking. If I had gone uncensored it would have been a bunch of jokes about him being stupid or gay. "He's... a really chill guy, even if I do sometimes question his sanity. He's easy to get along with, why do you ask?"

"Is that your question?"

I shrugged, "yeah sure."

"Sayori always talked about how great and friendly he was. I just wanted your opinion. He does seem like a nice guy."

"Yeah, he's nice to everyone, it's really hard to get on his bad side. I'm the same, I don't like being a douche, it doesn't process in my mind."

Before Monika could reply to me the bell rung out. "Looks like we're going to have to continue this after lunch." She said.

I walked out to the courtyard to meet up with Gaje. I recalled early on that day, he seemed a bit different, asking me that question out of nowhere. He was sitting on the fountain, swishing his hand around in the water with a blank expression on his face.

He spoke without looking up at me, "wassup Ryan, how's it going.

"It's going good so far, what about you?"

"Eh."

"You seem different, something happen?"

"What do you mean?" He shook his hand, drying it off, then wiped it down on his pants. "Is it because of my question this morning? If it is, don't worry, I was just curious."

"It's just, you seem... I don't know, distant?"

"Distant?" He looked at himself in the water, "I look pretty close." A small chuckle escaped him.

"You're just not yourself today."

"How am I not? I look the same, same hair, same eyes." He took everything I said literally.

"I don't know how to explain it... well, whatever. What happened last night? Did you spend the night at Sayori's?"

His eyes slightly closed as he seemed to relish in my question, a bright smile taking him. "Yeah... I told you I wasn't gonna be home."

"Did, anything happen?"

He giggled, "yeah... something happened." He proceeded to brush his hand through the water again, making his reflection wobble and contort. "Love is like magic."

"Oh... so you guys went through with it?"

"What do you mean, it?" His smile grew more devious, he knew exactly what I meant.

"You piece of trash, you know what I mean!" I set my tray down beside me on the fountain wall.

"Do I?"

"Yes. I see that grin you have, I'm not stupid."

His head snaked around, "that's debatable, but honestly, I don't know what you're insinuating. What do you think she and I did?"

"Ugh... sex, Gaje."

"Ryan, we can't, we're both in a relationship, and, I think of you as a friend."

"Oh my god. You! You and Sayori had sex."

"Oh... my bad. Maybe we did, maybe we didn't, I'll never tell."

"I'm going to assume that you did."

He brought his hand up, flicking water at me. "Alright you've persuaded me, yes, we had sex... twice. Don't try shower sex, it's not as fun as it sounds."

"That's... nice."

"Yeah... but..." He trailed off. "I just, feel off, being the one to initiate it."

"You initiated it?"

"No, she did last night, this morning... well I guess we both kind of did, but she made the overall decision."

"Huh... interesting, didn't really expect her to be the one to ask. Well, I do recall talking to her about it, so."

"I don't know, my mind is pinned. On one hand, I want to initiate it, but also I don't know if she wants to and I don't want to force her, y'know what I mean?"

"You're thinking too hard about it, I doubt either of you would mind if the other wanted to do it."

"Yeah, I guess." His eyes were somewhat closed, like he was nearing sleep. He was as quiet as a mouse, like he used to be before, when we had school together. I had forgotten that he wasn't always talkative, it was only after we became good friends. He generally kept to himself.

I gave him space, letting him think everything over whilst I ate my soup. I pat his shoulder and stood up, the bell would be ringing soon. "We'll talk more later, alright?"

"Mhm..." He poked at the water, a mini wave sent out in each direction.

Monika and I met up again at calculus, both of us finished our assignments early so we kept on with our questions. Monika kept her questions interesting, they usually involved things like a guilty pleasure or what do I find most attractive in a girl. All the while my questions were tame, just wanting to know her general feelings.

History brushed by, we spent the entire period watching a documentary on 14th century pirates.

"Alright off to the club!" Monika cheered, us both starting our ascent. She unlocked the club doors and flipped the light on, bringing it to life. The room always gave a sense of welcoming. The desks in the first row were all mashed together, the result of Gaje's announcement yesterday.

The others piled in soon after, Monika quickly took the stand as everyone settled. "Hey guys, I just wanted to let everyone know that on Monday we're going to be resuming our activities. I haven't decided whether or not it'll be poetry again, but who knows."

"Anything you decide will be great Monika! I have faith in you!" Sayori's radiant mood brought a smile to Monika's face. She nodded and strode back to her desk. I followed her over, giving Gaje and Sayori their privacy.

I pulled up a chair and rested my arms on the desk. "Any idea what we're going to do?"

"No clue honestly, but that's what I've been thinking about all week." Monika replied, twirling a pen.

"We'll figure it out."

She crossed one leg and leaned back in the chair, her skirt pulled up a little, exposing her inner thigh. "Maybe, instead of poems, we could all read books together, or we could study writing styles."

"Those seem like good ideas, maybe the others have something in mind."

"Yuri would like the reading idea, Natsuki possibly would too, but only if it was manga. And Sayori..." She looked over to the pair, "she's probably happy with whatever."

"Yeah I guess we're going to have to discuss it as a group." The room had grown nearly dead silent, the only noise came from Gaje and Sayori's soft giggles. I looked back to the closet, it was opened wide, Natsuki was reading her manga. The club was peaceful, though, as much as I loved it, there was still an underlying feeling in my mind. I could not stop thinking about my family, I just disappeared out of nowhere.

"Are you alright Ryan?" Monika asked, leaning in.

"Oh, y-yeah, I'm fine, just thinking about... home."

"Oh, Japan right? I couldn't find it on the map, I know you said it was a secluded island, but I didn't know it was that hidden."

"Was just thinking about them, I haven't talked to them in a while, just want to know how they are."

"I get you, being homesick sucks. Maybe we can call them sometime, you can show me off to them." She said salaciously.

It hurt me, not just because I had to lie, but I had to deal with the impossibility of seeing them. "Y-yeah." Monika's presence helped eased my mind, but I couldn't stop thinking of them. My vision started to blur as I felt a small droplet trickle down my face. I rubbed the back of my hand against my face and looked away. "I'll be right back."

"Where you off to?"

"B-bathroom."

"Alright, hurry back." She endearingly called.

I walked out to the stairwell and leaned up against the wall. I let my emotions get the better of me, I thought I could hold it. I stared out of the window, looking over the neighborhood in front of the school. My breathing started to regulate back to norms, I walked back in the class.

When I came back Monika had her eyes pinpointed on Gaje and Sayori, she seemed to have a question in her mind. I sat down and her eyes darted to me. "Hey, I meant to ask, did they... y'know?"

I sighed quietly, "yeah, they did."

"He tell you any details?"

"Not really, only that they did it twice, and Sayori initiated it."

She looked to them, "that's surprising, and twice? Either they both have high dexterity, or Gaje is a quick shot."

I chuckled, "well, they did it in bed, then the shower this morning I believe."

"Really now..." She smirked at them, "hope they used protection."

"I don't know if they did."

"Gaje! Could you come over here for a second?"

She called out to him, a pleasant tone, that in no way gave Gaje a hint to the deviousness behind it. He stood up, leaving Sayori with a gentle kiss on the forehead. "Yeah Monika? What's up?" He leaned onto the desk, his sight focused on the both of us.

"I was asking Ryan here, some questions, can you guess what about?" She had a sly grin on her face as she tried to hint at it.

"Cocaine?" Gaje replied.

"W-what?"

"I don't know, that's just my guess for a lot of things."

"A-alright... No, I was asking him about your eventful night and morning with Sayori."

"Ah, okay, yeah, what about it?"

"Y-you don't mind talking about it?"

"Nope."

Monika composed herself, sitting up straight in her chair. She wore a serious expression, her brows slightly furrowed as she leaned in closely. "Does Sayori make cute noises?" Her expression drained within a second to an innocent smile.

 _That wasn't even what you were going to ask!_

I watched from the sidelines as Monika deviated from everything I thought she was going to ask. "I mean..." Gaje looked back to Sayori, "everything she does is cute, so... I guess."

"Did you wear protection?"

"No."

"Final question, how was the shower sex?"

He sighed, "tiresome and not at all what I thought it would be, bath sex would probably be hotter. Okay, if that's all, peace!" He rushed back over to Sayori. I looked to Monika with a less than grateful sneer.

"Those were, interesting questions." I said.

"I didn't think he'd actually tell me, hah."

The remaining time was a blur, I stuck around with Monika for a while, but later on I joined Natsuki, she wanted to ask about some of the manga I had. The club had started to feel more like a visit to a friend's house than an actual club. After we left, Gaje had actually decided to walk home with me today. As I started to relax in my room I thought of things to say to Monika, we got to know a bit about each other, but I wanted to hang out with her, not just at school. Saturday looked like the perfect opportunity for it.

"Night Ryan, hope you dream of wonderful things. Mwah." Gaje came into my room unannounced, and shut the door, without letting me respond.

 _Interedasting._


	22. I didn't forget

"Hey Yuri." Friday came at me faster than a baseball bat and I wasn't feeling myself on that day. Much like Sayori, I also went through my own clouds. Yuri and I had just begun reading a new tale, we finished the Portrait of Markov series. I chose this one, though it was obvious to Yuri and me that I was disinterested at the moment.

"Are you alright Gaje?" She lightly sealed the book, her finger keeping its place. "You look kind of down."

"W-what? I'm sorry I was off in my own world." I had everything blocked out, I was just aimlessly staring into the book cover.

"It's fine. I was saying, you look a bit, well, depressed."

"Oh, yeah... no it's fine Yuri I just have some days like this, don't mind it."

"A-alright." She opened the book back up, accepting my answer. A few pages later and the clock kept turning, eventually reaching the end of the period. Yuri said her goodbyes and I took of the space with my legs, lying back on the bench.

The sky was partly cloudy, yet the sun managed to steer clear of all of them, shining through like a beam of happiness. I brought out a small pair of headphones and my phone. I wanted to hear my chill playlist, today was the perfect day for it. I rested my head flat and let the music take control as my mind began to wander.

A soft voice that was most definitely not part of the music crept into my ears. I opened my eyes and looked around. "Oh, hey Ryan." I sat up quickly giving him enough space on the bench and took the right earbud out. "What's up?"

"Nothing much, how about you?"

"Just thinking... about Natsuki actually." I kept pushing the issue back, ignoring it to pursue my own dreams.

"Natsuki?" He asked, surprised to hear me talking about her.

"Yeah, I was giving it some thought, and we've been kind of pushing back the issue of her father."

"Oh yeah... I forgot about that honestly. Do you have a plan in mind?" At that time I did not, all of the plans I threw away involved some heroic fight with her father, but that would not work out.

"Not at the moment... though, I suppose calling the police or reporting her father would be the easiest way. But, we need evidence, all we know is that he doesn't feed her."

Ryan sighed, he hated the position Natsuki was in more than anyone. The thought of violence towards her infuriated him, but he knew how to hold back his feelings. "Well, I hope is isn't too bad. Maybe we can try talking to her."

"She knows I'm onto her... I'll probably talk to her again in the club, we'll see where that goes." I thought about the results, she'd probably get defensive, and that would anger me, though it's not supposed to be easy.

"Alright, if you need my help I'm here."

"Okay..." I snickered, "I guess we're gonna tag team Natsuki in the closet."

"Goddammit Gaje. Now is not the time!" I knew he found it entertaining as well, despite his fake anger.

"Yeah, I know, I kid, I kid."

Around the time of the club I was walking down the hall with Sayori, she was telling me about her piece she made in art class that earned a spot in the school's gallery. I had not drawn in over 5 months, I did not miss it as much as I thought I would.

"Ms. Soren says that if I were to promote my art I could become famous!" Her energetic mood always brought me bliss, her happiness was my happiness.

"That is a possibility, and tell you what. If you want me to help you promote it, I will."

"Really!?"

I pressed my hand over my heart, "really." I opened the door to the club, I looked over to the closet, then back to Sayori. "Hey, Sayori, sorry to leave you alone, but I promised Nat we'd finish the manga today."

"Okay! Have fun!"

I moved to the closet, my pockets were full with my hands. I slowly peaked in, "Nat?" She turned back, slipping, what looked to be another box set of manga, into the shelf. "Look who finally returned! I knew you'd be back, couldn't resist seeing the ending to Parfait Girls, could ya?"

I smirked, "no, that's not it." I moved into a more serious expression. "I came to talk about something, well sensitive, and rather serious."

"Ugh... how bout we don't." She scoffed, turning back to the shelf.

"I want to talk about your life at home."

Her face tensed up, "w-what about it?"

"Well, who do you live with?"

"M-my dad." She gripped her left arm.

"Only your dad?"

"Y-yeah."

I stroked my chin, "are you two close?"

"W-what? O-of course we're close. What are with these questions?"

"Natsuki you know I care about your well-being right?"

Her cheeks blushed, she hid from my sight. "Y-yeah. I know that you baka."

"Good, then I need you to be honest about something. Is your dad... is he abusive?"

She paused, processing what I had just asked, I could see the look of terror on her face as she realized what I was insinuating. "N-no... Are you trying to piss me off!?" She growled.

"Natsuki. Tell, the truth. There's no way you're this skinny because of a 'high metabolism.'"

Her head drooped, her breathing began picking up its speed. I didn't want to rush an answer out of her. One wrong move, no doubt she'd be yelling up a storm. "W-what would you know?"

"Natsuki." I grabbed her shoulders, bringing her eyes to me. "You can tell me, it's okay."

"I... I can't."

"Yes you can Natsuki, please."

Her eyes started welling up, I quickly manipulated the doors, no one would be able to eavesdrop on us. "He... he h-hits me. He... I don't understand!" She fell into me, crying into my chest..

"Natsuki, we can tell the police, they'll help."

"N-no! If everyone knew... what, what would they think!?"

"Nat, it's not your fault, no one will think any less of you."

"B-but I have nowhere else to go, and-"

"You can stay with Ryan and me, I have another guest room you can stay in. We'll take care of you."

"With you? W-what'll Sayori think?"

"Sayori wouldn't care Natsuki. She'd understand." She stopped talking, her tears came to a halt as I could feel the warm wetness of her cries phasing through my blazer. Her head came up, she had no more excuses left.

"A-alright... I-I'll stay with you."

"After the club ends you'll come with me and Ryan and Sayori."

She nodded. "But won't they wonder why I'm walking home with you guys?"

"Yes... and I think you should tell them, they should know Natsuki."

"No, I can't! I don't..."

"I told you already Natsuki, no one will think lesser of you, they'll find out soon anyways, you might as well tell them now."

"A-alright... I'll tell Ryan and Sayori, but only them! Monika and Yuri... t-they can wait."

"Okay, I'm going back out, just remember, no matter what, we're here for you. I dropped my hands from her shoulders and moved out of the closet, everyone was still in their same spots, no one had budged at all. I looked to Ryan and walked up, "Hey, Ryan. Can I talk to you outside for just a moment?"

"Sure." He said, apologizing to Monika with his eyes. I had interrupted a conversation of theirs it seemed. I opened the door and the two of us walked out into the hall. I stretched my back and glanced back inside through the window to see if anyone was looking.

"Okay, so. I got Natsuki to admit her dad's abuse."

"Alright, and what's the plan?"

"Natsuki's going to come stay with us for a while, tomorrow me and her are going to the police station to report her father."

"Okay… so, what did he do, besides not feed her?"

I sighed, I knew this would piss Ryan off. "He beats her, I'm pretty sure a lot."

He sucked in air through his teeth as he looked away in anger, "are you sure you can't just use some divine punishment?"

"I said I wasn't going to use my power on their issues."

"I know, I know… fine. Alright let's get back inside before they start worrying."

We moved back into the room, splitting off to take our seats on opposite sides of the room. I grabbed the back of the chair as I guided myself down to the seat. When I settled in I noticed Sayori looking at a beautiful painting. "What's that?" I asked.

"My painting!" She moved the phone over so I could see it clearly. It was of a little girl, resembling herself, on a tree swing on the top of a hill overlooking a field of blue and orange.

"This is… really nice Sayori." It was, it reminded me of a classic nature painting, no doubt if she had painted this during that era, she would've been an instant famed painter.

"You think? Oh that reminds me!" She brought her bag to her lap and began rummaging through it, the sounds of clacking emanating from within. She pulled out a folded up piece of paper and placed it on the desk.

"Arcsal Arts Festival." I read out.

"Ms. Soren is bringing a few people out to go see it, and we can bring another person. So… do you, want to go?"

Anything. "Yeah." To be there with you.

"Yay! I'll let her know on Monday. Thanks!"

I ruffled her hair, "you don't have to thank me, what kind of boyfriend would I be not to praise your endeavors." She smiled sweetly and set her bag aside. I looked back to Yuri, she had her nose buried in her book as usual. I knew for sure her progress with her issue was increasing, she had told me a few days ago that she no longer felt the need to do it.

I pulled out my phone, clicking on my notes. Labeled from top to bottom was three separate tasks. One, "Tell Sayori you Love Her." That one was already checked off. Two, "Solve Girls' Problems." And three, "Be Happy." I liked writing lists sometimes, it was not a thing that increased my productivity, but I liked looking at them. It felt organized and like it had some physical value. I switched off the notes and scrolled over to the _Google_ equivalent browser _Seraph._

When I went to the library the other day, I learned quite a bit about where we were. The country was called Arcsal, it resembled Japan's land shape to a tee, yet was 20 times its size. It was the second largest land mass on the globe, and it was its own continent as well. There was five other continents, each with their own resemblance to continents from home. This world was as advanced as Earth. Arcsal lead in almost everything, health, science, education, you name it.

I found that on each night I had been here, when I fell asleep, some sort of unexplained phenomenon would occur. From waves standing still at beaches to large clouds forming together into the devil's face. Thankfully nothing disastrous had come from it, but this did explain the random pillow of Sayori I had next to me. I may or may not still cuddle with it.

"Are you looking at the news?" Sayori asked.

I glanced up off the phone and chuckled, "yeah, I wanted to see the weather for tomorrow, all clear."

She smiled widely, "the party's gonna be so much fun! Natsuki's gonna bring a giant cake, and we're gonna swim in the pool, and play games!"

"And my presents?" I said sadly.

"Ah! I forgot it's your birthday party! I'm sorry!"

"I was kidding Sayori, you don't have to bring me a present, really I'm fine."

"No! It's a birthday, and the birthday boy always gets a gift!" She was pretty grounded in her response, so I had no reason to argue.

"Alright, if you insist, just don't go too crazy with it, I don't want you spending all your money on me."

"I'll make sure it's cheap, and special!"

I laughed at how literal she took my answer. "I'm holding you to it, don't tie yourself up trying to figure out something."

We spent the next few minutes looking at interesting articles I had seen, my personal favorite being about a man riding a shark into a giant buoy. She got a giggle out of that one as well. A few minutes later the spunky pink haired girl walked up to the desk.

"Hey guys…" there was a pause. "Can I talk to you Sayori?" Apparently she had decided to tell them then.

"Okay! Is it a surprise!?" Sayori's hands were gently tapping at the desk in anticipation.

"No, well… I guess, but it's something serious Sayori, so please… Just come on!" She bit down and turned to the door. Sayori looked at me confused, I just nodded and told her she should go. She got up and followed Natsuki. Not long after I saw Sayori hug Natsuki at the door, a sorrowful look in her eyes. Natsuki seemed reluctant to hug her back, but she brought herself to do it. The door opened, and they both came in, Natsuki looked over to Ryan and brought him out, same as Sayori.

* * *

"Ryan, could you come with me?" Natsuki nervously gripped her arm as her eyes left our sight. Monika sighed quietly, disappointed that we were interrupted once again.

"Yeah, sure." I said. "Sorry Monika."

I pushed up off the chair, and we both moved to the doors. Gaje looked up with a knowing glare, he nodded somberly and I moved outside. Natsuki was tapping her foot against the floor, "alright… I already told Sayori and Gaje, but I guess you deserve to know as well. You have been nice, I guess, I haven't forgotten what you did to my hair."

"I thought you looked nice."

"Shut it."

I laughed, but got serious quickly. "Is this about your father?"

She looked at me surprised, but then her brows furrowed, "I told Gaje I would tell you guys." She looked hurt, but it seemed her feelings still weighed over that, because she tossed it aside like it didn't matter. "Whatever, yes, did he tell you already?"

"Yeah he told me."

"Alright…" she blinked, "so… yeah… I'm going to be staying with you for now."

"With me? In my room?"

"W-what? No! Gaje said you guys had another room I could use." I was a bit disappointed, that meant no manga reading buddies late at night.

"It's going to be fun now that there's more people in the house." I said.

"Fun? Why is it going to be fun?" She asked.

"Doing all kinds of things, like reading manga, or watching anime."

"Oh yeah! I forgot you had all those manga." Natsuki seemed to cheer up at the thought, manga was one of her only passions aside from baking.

"Yep, you can take some if you want to read them." I was glad that she was happy, the thought of her hurt, it just angered me. I could not fathom how someone could abuse their own child, in any way. We came back inside, the both of us split off at the end of the desk rows.

"Welcome back… again. Hopefully now we can talk about Sunday." Monika was a bit irritated, both times I was taken away, she had tried to tell me about something she was planning.

"Yea sorry. So what do you have planned?"

"I was thinking, we could go out Sunday, and see a movie. I know you said you like story centered movies, so I thought we could go watch _Renegade_."

"Y-yeah that sounds like fun."

"Okay, so you're okay to go? I don't want to ruin any plans you might have…"

"What plans could I possibly have?" It sounded pretty sad, but it was true, I didn't have shit to do. No one invited me to do anything anyways…

"Alright! I'll buy two tickets for Sunday, at… seven-forty-five." She pressed down on her phone, presumably purchasing the tickets then and there.

"Alright it sounds like a plan. Will be looking forward to it." A perfect scenario of us, sitting in a quiet theater, and her arm creeps over the armrest, and she grabs my hand. That was all I could imagine.

As the club came winding down to an end, Natsuki walked out of the earlier than usual, she already had her bag around her shoulder. She walked over to Gaje and Sayori and I soon joined them after parting with Monika.

Today was different, besides the obvious news we received, and the fact that someone else had joined us in this journey home. The general mood felt heavier, like there was an elephant in the room, even though we all had talked about it. Gaje wanted to lift the mood, heighten everyone's spirits, and he did, but, in the most distasteful way. He used the worst kinds of jokes, puns.

"Hey, guys, I got a joke for you." He said, adjusting his bag.

"Oh no." I knew what was coming, I too had fallen victim to this catastrophe before.

"What is it?" Sayori asked inquisitively.

"What twitches, and sits on the bottom of the ocean?" He paused, looking for anyone to answer, a cheeky smirk on his face. "A… nervous wreck!" He looked around once more at us.

I groaned, "why Gaje?" Natsuki did as well.

"Oh! I get it, hahah that was good!" Sayori blurted. "I got one too!" What kind of shorts do clouds wear?"

"Ugh… what Sayori." Natsuki had her head hung low.

"Thunderwear!"

"Pffffft, okay that one was really good, I've never heard that one before." Gaje and Sayori seemed to be enjoying themselves at least. Natsuki and I were even more distraught having to deal with them. Gaje noticed this however.

"Okay last one." Gaje cleared his throat. "What do snowmen do in their spare time?"

I sighed again, "what?

"They chill."

I was screaming inside, and from Natsuki's disgusted face, she was too, but Sayori, of course not. She was giggling along with him, them and their cheeky cheesy jokes. Thankfully that joke was all we had to hear, Sayori walked into her house, and we walked to ours.

Natsuki sat on the couch, all of our shoes and bags collectively stacked at the door. She lightly tapped her hands against her knees, she wasn't as comfortable as last time. I sat next to her and turned on the TV, I handed her the remote. "Wanna watch something?"

"Oh, sure." She grabbed it and scrolled down, her eyes lit up at the sight of, "Parfait Girls!" She clicked on it instantly, and her eyes remained on it.

"Hey Nat, are you hungry?" Gaje asked, standing in the kitchen.

"Yeah." She seemed to be a lot more cheery, and I was glad, I did not want her to feel down the entire time being here. Gaje came over with a bowl of rice, small beef strips and vegetables decorated the top, their juices mixing in.

"One for you…" he looked to me, "and one for you." I grabbed the bowl with both hands, I could feel the instant heat transfer into my palm.

"Thanks." Natsuki said, picking up the chopsticks Gaje had left in the side of the bowl.

"Yea thanks Gaje." Mine had a fork stuck in in, apparently he had no faith in my chopstick ability.

"No problem. I'll be back in a bit, I gotta make the bed in the other guest room, it's dirty as hell." There was no other guest room in the house, but from the look he was giving me, he knew that. Natsuki and I remained on the couch, watching the Parfait Girls marathon, she would quote lines from time to time, quiet enough to where she thought I couldn't hear her. But when we got to a scene where they were having a bake off, she screamed in unison with one of the girls.

"Strawberries are a topping of class!" She held her fist in the air as she shouted it.

I looked over to her, "what?"

She lowered her hand slowly, remembering that I was here as well. "Uh… she said it, in the anime." She faced the TV avoiding my look of judgment.

"If you're gonna judge me, you can go away."

"I'm not judging."

"Yeah, whatever." She finished off the food and put the bowl down. About that time her phone began ringing, when she picked it up her face turned to sheer terror, as if her entire mind had shut down. "I-it's my dad…"

"Don't answer him." I worriedly said, I did not want her to have to deal with her father, he would be dealt with soon. She sent him to voicemail, but he started calling again, she turned the entire phone off and shoved the phone in her pocket. The wood from upstairs started creaking as Gaje made his way back down.

"Okay the guest room is fixed, whenever you want to go up is fine. Oh and one more thing, are you okay with dogs?"

Natsuki nodded, "I guess, I've never really had one before."

Gaje walked past the TV, his feet scuffing against the carpet. "Okay good cause you're gonna meet my dog." He disappeared into the hallway, the sliding door thudded, and in came Petey. He stopped dead as he noticed Natsuki sitting there, the both of them just stared at each other. Petey made the first move and started smelling her legs, causing Natsuki to giggle softly from his nose tickling her.

"His name is Petey." Gaje said. "He bites, but only if you're playing rough, but don't worry, he nibbles like a baby." That was because Petey pretty much was still a baby, he was only two.

"Hi Petey." She reached out to pat his head, but he dodged it and recoiled back.

"And he doesn't like his head being touched." Gaje added.

"Oh. What kind of dog doesn't like head pats?"

"Him."

"That's dumb."

"Eh, don't question it."

He moved to the recliner and joined us in watching. Now the both of them were quoting lines, Natsuki didn't surprise me, but Gaje? He hadn't even seen the anime, and he only read like two volumes. I was getting tired, it was almost eleven. Time really flies when you're watching Parfait Girls.

"Well, I'm heading to bed." I said, getting off the couch. The TV cut off, Natsuki stood as well.

"I am too, I'm beat."

"Then I guess we're all sleeping then." Gaje commented.

Gaje walked up first, followed by me and Natsuki. I walked to the end of the hall, I noticed that the closet was open, but it was no longer a closet. I shrugged and went in my room. I jumped onto my bed, the mattress jiggled with me. My phone slid into my hand and I brought it up. I messaged Monika, "hey, you still up?"

"Yeah, I'm up, what's up?" She replied.

"What are you doing right now?"

"Just making a salad before I go to bed, you?"

"Just laying in bed right now."

"Ah… you help Gaje with party preparations?"

"Well, he hasn't started it yet. Will probably be waking up early to do them."

"Oh alright, well, I can't wait to see you again tomorrow 3."

"Yeah, same here. 3."

"I'm gonna go to sleep now, but I'll cya tomorrow, night!"

"Goodnight. Sweet dreams."


	23. Reporting a Crime

**_A/N: Little hiatus on account of the nearing hurricane. Hopefully be back to normal near the end of the week._**

On the morning of Saturday I had to wake up earlier than everyone else. I had to prepare for the party and after that, take Natsuki to the police station. I hung up some streamers from the hall's archways and from the roof. I set up a line of speakers throughout the house and backyard. I rubbed my hands, smacking off glitter and dust. It was six-thirty by the time I finished everything, moving into the kitchen I made breakfast for everyone before walking upstairs to wake them. Ryan was awake in no time at the first mention of food, but Natsuki, I was hesitant. I did not want to open her door, it was not the same with her as it was with Ryan or Sayori. So, I knocked, but no answer. So I knocked again, and again, intervals of three quick taps. Five minutes passed and my knocks were beginning to weaken, my arms refused to go on, but her door opened, revealing the small tired girl.

"What!?"

"Breakfast!" I said with a smile, ignoring her anger.

"Ugh... hold on! I need to fix my hair." She shut the door, but it opened up instantly." W-wait, I don't have any clothes to change into."

I thought about giving her some of mine, but I remembered. "I'll ask Sayori if she can spare some."

"Hopefully she doesn't get me a bunch of cutesy clothes." I felt that was a bit of the pot calling the kettle black. When was Natsuki's attire outside of school, not cutesy? I walked down the stairs and called up Sayori, she answered the phone with a snore like sniffle, which made me smile.

"Well, good morning sunshine, nice to see you're wide awake." I said.

"I-I'm awake... I was j-just... jest..."

"Sleeping?"

"Y-yes. I mean no!"

"If you say so."

She must've tapped into what little energy she had, her tired tone fading out. "I mean it!"

I waived my right to silence, I could hear her shuffling out of her bed. "Gaje? Are you there?" There was a pause, "did I hang up?"

"No, I'm still here, I was just waiting for you to admit that you were sleeping."

"A-ah... Ehehe... I-I was."

"See, that wasn't so hard." I chuckled, "before I forget, Natsuki needs to borrow some clothes, if you could spare some."

I heard her closet open, and a slight gasp of excitement escape her. "Yeah! I have a bunch of clothes she can wear! She can have my cutest clothes."

"That's good... when can you bring them?"

"I'll come over right now, be there in a-" The phone cut off, she must have accidentally hung up.

"Well, I guess I should make her a plate as well."

We all sat at the kitchen table, the lips smacking, the sound of swallowing drinks, and forks clinking. It was all normal, mundane, nothing out of the ordinary, but it felt, strange. It was eerily quiet, and I did not like that. I did not want to start the talking however, the silence that loomed over grabbed a hold of my vocal cords, ensuring I did not speak.

Everyone finished relatively quickly, I quickly cleaned all the dishes off and put them back into the cupboards. Sayori was showing Natsuki all of the clothes she brought, shirts, shorts, underwear. It was interesting, the sight of Sayori's underwear, I could not help, but to feel a slight twitch below. I had to get it out of my mind.

"So, we should probably get going soon to the station." I said. Natsuki grabbed a pair of clothes and walked upstairs to change.

"Can I come too?" Sayori asked.

"Yeah, how bout you Ryan, would you like to join this riveting expedition?"

"I guess... I don't have anything else to do." He stood, and walked to the kitchen, grabbing a drink from the fridge. Natsuki walked back down stairs, she had a light blue shirt and red shorts that were cut above the knee.

"Let's get this over with." She said, as we all started heading out.

The police station was not that far, it was just before the marketplace downtown. We turned up the street and came to it, a giant rectangular building, at least 5 stories. The front had long concrete steps that looked to be freshly power washed, and the outer walls the same. It felt like I was entering a courtroom The lobby had a giant symbol on the floor, simple black and blue, a police insignia. Our reflections were blurred, like we were looking into a mirror at a carnival.

"Where do we go?" Asked Sayori. I quickly scanned the room, there was a man sitting at a large desk, we moved over to him, he greeted us with a donut glazed smile.

"Good morning, how can I be of service to you fine men and women?" He had a yellow stain on his collar, a sandwich was atop the counter that was half eaten.

"Yes, we'd like to report domestic abuse, it's for my friend." I looked back to Natsuki, I smiled generously, pulling all worry from her mind.

"One moment, I'll let officer Gowan know. Take a seat, he'll meet with you in just a moment.

"Alright thanks." I said. We all sat on one of the benches against the wall, a few moments later the double doors beside the nice officer opened up. A man, who looked to be in his mid thirties, caught my attention. He had a handlebar mustaches that nearly connected with his scruff on his chin. He screamed hard-ass, but I learned him to be the opposite. He walked right up to us, "are you the ones here for the domestic violence case?"

"Yes sir." Natsuki said.

"Well if you'll follow me, we can get this report down for the record." The five of us pushed past the doors, entering the room of determined and high-strung police officers. The smell of fresh roasted coffee and fast food filled the air. We moved into officer Gowan's office, Natsuki and Sayori sat down in the two chairs he had besides his own.

He settled in, Sayori's eyes wandered around the walls and decorations. He had a bookshelf full of awards and murder case books, on either side was a picture of him with his wife and kids.

"Alright, so who is it we're reporting, and do we have any evidence to show upfront?" He took a sip from his coffee, leaving a small amount in his mustache hairs.

We were all relatively quiet, I was unsure whether Natsuki wanted me to say it or if she was okay doing it herself. I her a small breath escape her, "m-my father. And, I do have, some evidence." She reached into her pocket for her phone. The officers gentle expression tensed up as she handed the phone over.

A video started playing, Natsuki was sitting inside of her closet, the camera was looking through the small cracks in it. Her father was just on the other side, he had a beer bottle in his hand, his shirt was stained with it. He moved towards the closet and the phone dropped to the floor, we could only see her scared face, she had tears rolling down her cheeks. She screamed, her father began dragging her out. Sayori looked away, it disturbed her. We could hear Natsuki crying in pain, the sound of of someone being hit.

The officer stopped the video, hearing all he needed to. "Alright, I've heard enough. What's your address hon?"

Natsuki, still traumatized by that video took a moment to compose herself. She breathed in, "i-it's 2309 Calumn Drive." She put her phone back in her pocket.

The officer grabbed his walkie talkie and started to report in. "Dispatch I need a unit on the address of 2309 Calumn Drive, looking for one suspect, an adult male, approximately 5'10" in height, and medium weight. He has dark brown hair and green eyes. Needs to be brought in for questioning." The walkie cut off, he moved it back to his belt. "Alright miss, we're going to bring your dad in, with the evidence you've shown, it should be relatively easy to get this to court."

He looked to me, "is she staying with you all for now?"

"Yeah," I said. "She's staying with me and him."

"Alright, if you could write that address down, we're going to need to contact her sometime down the road." He handed me a pen and I began writing down my address on the small slip of paper that he handed over.

"That's all for now folks. Thank you for coming in." He reached his hand out over the table, Natsuki and him shook hands. Sayori and her stood up, we walked back out of the station. We stopped at the steps, taking in the fresh air.

"Are you alright Natsuki?" Sayori asked, sitting by her on the steps.

"Y-yeah, I just hated reliving that." Her hands were gripping the stairs, she looked off into the street. "Let's just get back, it's over and done with."

"Okay." Sayori stood up, still concerned about her. She pulled her into a hug, Natsuki didn't resist, she knew it wouldn't matter if she said for her to stop. "You're going to be safe from now on."

Natsuki didn't answer, Sayori eventually let go, lifting her head off of Natsuki's back. We started walking home. I opened the front door, Ryan and Natsuki moved to the couch, Sayori stood next to me.

"Is she going to be alright?" Sayori asked.

"Yeah, hopefully the video she showed would be enough evidence for them to press charges. But they're probably going to need her to testify if it goes to court." We sat down on the recliner looking over at the TV. Natsuki was scrolling through all the shows, Ryan stopped her, he spotted something.

"Wait! Natsuki put that on."

"W-what?" She said.

"That one, there!" Ryan's scrambled pointing and hand movements made Natsuki fumble around with the remote as she tried to figure out what he was talking about. She clicked on One Piece, it was Ryan's favorite anime.

I relaxed in the recliner, leaning it down, Sayori falling back with me. I looked over to the kitchen, I made a bunch of food for the party, it was all put in the fridge and microwave. "Hey, Natsuki." I had remembered she was going to make the cake. "Did you make that cake?"

She scoffed, "duh I made the cake. What, do you not trust me?"

"So where is it?"

"It's... at my house." Her head dropped. "Ugh."

"Well, I can always just go out and get another one."

"No! You're not getting on of those sorry excuse for a cake from a bakery." She shot up off the couch and sprinted to the kitchen, grabbing pots and ingredients. "Where's your sugar!?"

 _ **Snap**_. "It should be in that cabinet." I pointed up to the one I had just placed the sugar. Sayori and I were just watching as she frantically combined all the ingredients, she was working as fast as she could, carrying multiple ingredients in her arms.

By one-fifteen she had slipped the cake into the oven. She wiped the sweat from her head with a small towel on the counter. "Phew." She leaned down, resting.

By one-thirty she took the cake out, it was a three layer chocolate cake. It was full brown, the top was as flat as she was. "Feast your eyes on the wonders of Natsuki's baking skills. Hold your applause."

Sayori and I moved to the kitchen, Sayori's eyes were like her mouth, drooling at the delectable sweet. "Can I have some now!?"

"No, it's for Gaje, you have to wait."

"Aw..."

"It looks good." I said. "Too bad we have to wait for Yuri and Monika."

"Yeah..." Sayori agreed somberly.

"Speaking of which." I looked over at Natsuki, "do you want to tell them, or one of us tell em'?"

She crossed her arms, "I guess I'll tell em, I already told you three, so it's not that bad." She finished off the cake, depositing 20 separate small candles in the cake and lining the outer circle with icing.

I yawned, I was pretty tired from this morning. "Hey, I'm pretty beat, I'm gonna head off to sleep." I walked through the living room, "hey can you wake me up when the others arrive?" I asked Ryan.

He nodded, not taking his eyes off the screen, "yeah I got you."

I slipped into my bed, drawing the silk sheets over me. They conformed to my shape covering me entirely. I turned on my side, facing the wall. I heard my door creak open. I was too lazy to check the reason behind it. My bed started to lean to the other side as someone entered it. The covers lifted and fell once again. I turned over this time, seeing Sayori's blue eyes.

"H-hi" She whispered. "Did I wake you?"

"No, I was still awake, are you tired too?"

"No, I just... wanted to be next to you." She smiled, I arched my arm around her, pulling her closer.

"I do too." I closed my eyes, "goodnight."

"Night, l-love you."

"Love you too..."

It felt like I was lying inside of a lava lamp, I was jumping through small pools of gel, becoming suspended in liquid, unable to move. Everything went dark, I heard a light thumping in my ears, like someone was tapping the glass at an aquarium. I scoured every inch of darkness, searching for the origin, but nothing visible was there. The incoherent noises started forming into letters, "G...a...j...e..."

"Gaje... Gaje!"

The darkness turned to light, a flash of white slowly turning to beige as I stared at the walls. Ryan was standing overhead Sayori and me. Sayori was still in my clutches, still asleep.

"You're going to miss your party if you don't get up." He said.

I yawned, "okay, give me a minute. I'll be down soon."

He left the room, I nuzzled my head into Sayori's shoulder, "hey, come on Sayori, everyone's here."

"Aw... okay, we shouldn't keep them waiting."

We both shuffled out of bed, I stretched my arms out and yawned again causing my eyes to slightly tear up. We made our way downstairs, Yuri and Monika were sitting down with Ryan and Natsuki. Monika was sitting in the recliner, the couch was out of space.

"Hey Gaje, hey Sayori." Monika said as we came into view.

"Hi." We both said back.

As I walked through the living room I noticed a couple of bags on the kitchen table. There was a bottle of something protruding from one of the plastic bags. Beside the bags were two smaller ones that were plain colors, one red, one purple. I sat down on the floor, on the other side of the couch.

"Good evening Gaje." Yuri said.

"Hi Yuri, you doin well?"

She nodded. The music was still playing through the speakers, it was all chill jazz and nice piano songs. Natsuki got up and walked to the kitchen, bringing back the chocolate cake. She placed it on the coffee table, all of the candles were lit, some of the candles were close together, making their flame burn brighter.

"Is it time already?" I asked.

"Well yeah, we get this over and done with, we can actually have fun." Natsuki replied.

"Okay, okay." I was prepared to blow out the candles, but Sayori stopped me.

"Wait!" She said. "We still have to sing happy birthday!"

I raised my hands, I wasn't keen on hearing it, but who was I to argue? God? "Okay, go ahead."

"Ugh, do we have to?" Natsuki whined.

"Yes we do Natsuki! It's a special occasion." Sayori rebutted.

Monika and Yuri didn't seem to have an issue with it, and Ryan joined along just because he knew I hated it. They all started singing the song in unison, but their voices were each in different tones. It was kind of funny.

"Happy birthday, to you..." They ended. I blew out the candles and looked to everyone with a smile. It may have not been my birthday on that day, but having the party then made it feel just as special.

Natsuki portioned out the cake to ensure we all got an equal share, though my slice was the largest. Sayori and I glanced to each other as we ate, we both had collectively maintained a chocolaty stain on our lips.

"This is really good Natsuki." Monika commented. Yuri agreed, giving her all the praise she rightfully deserved.

"It most definitely is! I made it, of course it would be."

We stacked our plates on the table, Monika and Yuri grabbed the bags from the kitchen and brang them to me. It was their gifts. I opened Monika's red bag first, inside was a medium-sized journal that she got as a thank you and a birthday gift.

"This was very thoughtful of you, thank you very much." I picked up the purple bag that Yuri gave me. I reached in and pulled out a small black box. It was slender and it had a rough texture. I opened the box, laying inside was black fountain pen with a golden tip. As I took out the pen to examine it Yuri decided to say something.

"It's a Montblanc pen, my mom gave it to me from her personal collection. They are extremely valuable and precise."

I took off the pen's cap, it had a very fine tip. I brushed up my index finger against the tip of it, it was almost as sharp as one of her knifes. "Well thanks Yuri." I held Monika's gift in my other hand. "I guess I can use the pen on this, maybe I'll start doing daily entries again." I put the journal and the pen back in there individual bags and set them aside.

With all the formalities of the party done, we were free to do any other activities we wanted. Some of us wanted to swim in the pool and the rest wanted to play a game. Yuri and Natsuki walked out into the backyard, Petey, who usually resided out there was in Ryan's room. With them gone it became a couple's game of truth or dare.


	24. Truths, Dares, Future Prospects

**_A/N: Okay, hurricane wasn't that bad in my area, so... woo. Chapter updates should be back to normal._**

 ** _More lemon next chapter._**

* * *

I stayed on the floor with Sayori, it gave me a better view of them, but the floor was also cool and comfortable. "So who wants to go first?" I asked, looking around at everyone. Everyone had curious looks as they eyed each other.

"I'll do it." Monika said. I nodded, signaling her to take the stage. "Gaje, truth or dare?" She asked.

"Truth." I said, preparing myself for something foul and naughty.

"What's your biggest fear?"

I had to think it over, I had a lot of things that made me uneasy, but something that I found truly terrifying? "Honestly, probably flying. My mind likes to wander towards worst case scenario with a lot of things."

"Are you afraid of heights as well?" Monika asked. People usually associate the two together, so I can see why she wondered.

"No, I just don't like the aspect of being suspended 20,000 feet in the air, having the chance to plummet and die." The very thought shook my core.

"Well then." I did say quite a mouthful, so that kind of a response was guaranteed.

"Okay... Ryan, truth or dare!?" I blurted in a mixture of high and low volume.

"Truth..?" He said, I could see he was terrified of what I had in store for him, but I kept it tame, like Monika.

"What do you not like about me?" He always told me that he never had anything to complain about when it came to our friendship or me as a person. But, I was always one to question the validity of comments people made. It was not that I did not trust him, but my mind does not allow me to believe people not hating something in me.

His lips disappeared into his mouth as he looked to the side, he had no immediate answer. "There's really nothing I can think of, honestly."

"Are you sure?" I pushed, trying to encourage it out of him.

"Yeah, nothing you do really annoys me or anything." He looked to Sayori, "truth or dare?"

"I'll go truth as well, since you both did."

"Do you... want to have kids, with Gaje?"

Sayori had a nervous grin, her cheeks blushing like always. I was intrigued, I wanted to hear her answer just like them. "I've t-thought about it… maybe, s-someday." She glanced to the side meeting my gaze with a shy smile, then turned away. "Monika, truth or dare?"

"Well, since we're all doing it, truth."

"Are you two going out on a date anytime soon?" Her face screamed out with eagerness.

Monika, proud to retort, chuckled slightly. "As a matter of fact, we are. Tomorrow, we're watching a movie."

"Oooh what movie?"

" _Renegade_."

"Gaje and I usually watch a movie when he comes over, it's nice." It's only nice because we're together, under one warm blanket, cuddling.

"Ryan." Monika said. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare." He said, breaking the cycle.

"I dare you..." She paused. "To kiss me on the lips."

I scoffed, "that's not even a hard dare." Ryan looked Monika in the eyes, Monika had a small smile. She puckered her lips and closed her eyes, waiting for Ryan to get off his ass and give her want she wanted. He leaned in and planted his lips upon hers, making her cheeks raise in glee.

"Your turn." She said pulling back. Sayori squeed quietly beside me at the sight.

"G-Gaje, truth or dare?" Ryan was still processing that kiss.

"Dare. Hit me with your hardest challenge Ry-an."

"I dare you and Sayori to... make out."

"Come on, these dares are not even hard... but I will happily oblige." I whipped my head around and kissed her deeply, savoring the abundant sweetness of her lips. I let go, "truth or dare?"

"T-truth, hah, I like those."

"What's my birthday present?"

"A-ah, I can't tell you, it's a secret."

"C'mon, you have to... it's the game!"

"It's a surprise, it won't be special if I tell you now!"

"Fine, fine... what do you think about me moving in with you?" I had been thinking about it, it made sense for us to move in with each other. I could just toss Ryan the keys and move my stuff over to her house.

"We'd be together all day! We could play games and watch movies, and eat together!" Her bubbling excitement clouded over my original question.

"So, do you think I should?"

"Yes!"

"When should I?"

"Tomorrow!? Oh, but... we should probably wait til Natsuki is okay." Monika did not comment on what Sayori said, which assured me that Natsuki had told them about her father.

"Yeah, you're right..." I said, "well, your turn."

"Ryan! Truth or dare!?" Sayori asked in a mischievous manner. She stared intensely between them.

"Dare."

"Do a handstand!" Leave it to Sayori to come up with some interesting tasks. Ryan stood up and walked to the wall, looking back at us. He lowered his head to the floor and pulled his legs up, heels touching base with the wall.

He came back, Monika and Sayori clapped lightly for him. "Good going." Monika said. "Didn't think you actually had it in you."

"Yeah... I haven't done that since I was five." He replied. "Alright." He shuffled around in the couch getting back in his comfort zone. "Monika, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"What do you like the most about me?"

"Didn't you ask me something like that a while back?"

"Did I?" He questioned. "Maybe I did, tell me again."

She snickered, "okay. I like that you accept me for me, how adorable you look when you're embarrassed, and how laid back you are. It's refreshing."

I felt like the game was devolving more into a pissing contest of who has more affection for their significant other.

"T-thanks Monika, I'm glad." He smiled, she smiled back at him.

"Truth or dare Gaje?"

"Truuuuth." I sang.

"Tell us about your eventful night with Sayori." She meant the day Sayori and I had sex, I told her some things during the week. I guess she really wanted to know, or she just loved seeing Sayori all flustered. I sure did.

I looked down to Sayori, she didn't seem too embarrassed. "How do I start exactly?" I scrunched up my lips and nodded slowly, trying to extract the words from my head. I did not want for anything I said to be misconstrued.

"Well..." I mentioned how it started, Sayori and I going up to her bedroom, the innocent way she asked me, the kiss to start it off sending me sky-high. Monika cut in every so often, asking about specific details and feelings. I ended it off, "and well, I didn't want to stop, so I... came, inside." That part brought back the embarrassed Sayori I knew.

I wrapped my arm around her waist, comforting her. "So yeah, that's everything." I said. Ryan's face was almost as red as Sayori's. His reaction woke me up, letting me know who I should pick next. "Ryan, truth or dare?"

"D-dare."

"I dare you to bite Monika's ear lobe." Just a nibble, that's all I wanted him to do. To get a sense of Monika's kinkiness, that's all I was after.

Monika's cheeks flourished red, "m-my ear lobe? It's a dare, so... go ahead Ryan." Ryan looked at her, slowly leaning in with his mouth slightly open, bearing his teeth. He bit down, closing his lips on it as well.

"T-that tickles, ahahah." Monika giggled. Ryan let go and kept quiet. You could tell he was uncomfortable doing that in front of everyone.

"S-Sayori, truth or dare?" He said trying to veer the attention to someone else.

"Truth!"

"What is something Gaje does, that turns you on?" Certainly an interesting thing for Ryan to say, he wasn't one to ask that kind of thing so freely.

"Turns me on? Ehehe... there's a lot. He's gentle, and takes care of me, m-my body I mean." Hearing that, I learned I was doing it correctly. Score one for the sexually inexperienced. She nodded to herself, confirming what she said. "Truth or dare... Gaje."

I stroked my chin, "hmm... dare."

"I dare you to change shirts with me!"

I looked at her, she was wearing that small pink shirt as usual, then I looked to my large black shirt. "Alright..." I took my shirt off, she did as well. She happily brought my shirt over her head. It was baggy, she looked like a child in her father's clothes. Her pink shirt was extremely tight, and I could only get it a quarter ways down my body. Monika and Ryan couldn't stop laughing. "Sayori... there's too much of a difference here." I said chuckling as well.

"But it's a dare remember? You gotta keep it on. You look funny like that."

I shrugged, "fine. You're lucky you're way too cute for me to say no to."

"Ryan, truth or dare?"

"Ah." He paused, halting his laughter. "Dare."

"I dare you to sit in your underwear."

He stood up and walked behind the couch. His shorts flung out to the side. He was wearing a pair of black boxer briefs. He plopped back on the couch, catching Monika's gaze. "Very colorful." She said.

Ryan pulled the ends of his underwear, adjusting them. "Y-yeah... truth or dare, Monika?"

"Truth."

"Are... y-you sub..." He stopped, scratching his neck nervously. "Are you submissive or d-dominant."

"Ooh, we're getting into sexual territory, I like it." She pressed her index to her lips, "well it depends. Usually I'm more on the dominant side, but it doesn't hurt to be submissive." She winked at him, sending Ryan's face into a frenzy of blushes. "Sayori, truth or dare?"

"Truth!" Sayori cooed.

Having the sexual door opened, Monika had an entire world of questions opened. "Tell Gaje, and us, one of your sexual fetishes."

"Fetishes?" She didn't understand, her innocence never ceased to amaze me.

"Y'know how some people are sexually aroused by like feet? That kind of thing. Is there something that really gets you going."

"A-ah... that's embarrassing... I don't think I can say."

"That's the game Sayori, you can't turn back now."

I leaned into Sayori, resting my head on hers. I turned to whisper in her ear, "you can say whatever it is Sayori, it won't change anything."

"O-okay..." She looked up, "I like, the idea of being t-tied up."

"Like bondage?" Monika said. "Sayori, you naughty girl."

"I." Sayori paused, having no way of making a comment back. I wanted to comfort her, I rubbed her side.

"When did you figure that out?" Monika asked.

Sayori brought her index fingers together, she chuckled. "Natsuki... showed me one of her manga, b-but it was the wrong one. It looked... fun."

"Looks like you've learned something new Gaje, how do you feel?"

I tried to keep a straight face, my cheeks were hot, forcing the ends of my lips to curve up into a smile. I looked away, "I mean… it doesn't really change anything." I shot Ryan a look, he knew that I also had a slight affinity for rope.

"Why are you smirking?" She asked. Ryan leaned over and whispered into her ear. "Oh-ho-ho." She raised her brows. Ryan must've told her the exact reason.

"Looks like that could be something you experience in the near future Sayori." Monika said.

"H-huh? What do you mean?"

Monika's eyes darted to me, dragging Sayori's with her. I wanted to tease her as well, it was all in good fun, and seeing her embarrassed was cute as all hell. "Yeah, maybe sometime." I leaned in closer to whisper, "maybe tomorrow."

Her cheeks were as hot as a road in the summer, she pulled away and covered her face.

"M-M-Monika, truth or dare." She said softly.

"I'll take truth Sayori."

"W-what's one of your f-fetishes, then?"

"Trying to turn the tides?" She paused, "I'd have to say, my favorite would probably be... dominant guys. Like aggressive."

I looked amusingly at Ryan, his eyes shot to the side. He dramatically brought his body forward, covering his groin with his arms. I knew what he was doing, same methods and all.

"Gaje? Truth or dare?"

"Hm, dare."

"I dare you to stick your hands in her panties."

"Deal." I answered quickly. I brought my hand to Sayori's shorts. I looked to see if she was okay with me doing it. I pulled the waist of her shorts and panties and laid my hand flat on her groin. It was like a being inside of a large cotton blanket, but it felt like skin. I was enjoying myself, needless to say, it was tempting, and I was close to doing something unseemly.

"Do I have to leave it there?" I asked.

Monika looked to Sayori's unsettled face, "you can leave it."

"Alright..." My heart was beating into my ears. "I think... I think I'm done with truth or dare for now." I slowly brought my hand out. Monika groaned.

"It was getting good though..." She looked at Sayori, "your knight in shining armor."

"I'm gonna go take a dip in the pool, come on Sayori." She grabbed my hand.

"So... can I put my pants back on?" Ryan asked.

"Yes Ryan." Monika giggled.

We started making our way to the backyard, leaving Ryan and Monika in the living room. We stepped out on the patio, Yuri was relaxing in one of the beach chairs while Natsuki was spinning around in a donut on the pool.

Yuri's head rose, "oh hey guys. Did you finish the game already?"

"Yeah." I replied. "Sayori and I wanted to relax in the pool."

Sayori exhaled slightly. "I forgot to change, I'll be right back! Don't get in yet!"

"Okay." I walked to the edge of the pool, Natsuki slowly turned to my direction. I raised my hand and waved slightly.

"Hey Gaje. Thanks again for letting me stay."

"Don't mention it Natsuki, like I told you, I care about you guys."

I kicked my feet in the water, waiting for Sayori to come back out. I heard the sliding door reopen. "Okay!" Sayori shouted. I turned my head, clothed or not, she never ceased to bring my heart up a beat.

"What do you think? It's not too small is it? I tried to find the right size, but I think I might've grabbed the wrong one..."

"It's fine Sayori, you look beautiful."

"Ehehe... thanks."

"Shall we?"

"You're not going to change into a swimsuit?"

I looked myself up and down, "no, this is fine, oh, but almost forgot to take out my phone." I set it aside near the grass. I lowered myself into the pool, Sayori did as well.

The water was warm. The weightlessness of being in the water was relaxing. I playfully pushed my hands under the surface, shooting small pulses of water at her. She fired back, pushing waves from the surface. It broke out into a splash fight that caught Natsuki in the crossfire. She tried to cover her face in the donut, but had nowhere to hide.

"Hey! S-stop!" Natsuki yelled.

Sayori directed more of the water to Natsuki. "C'mon Natsuki! If you don't fire back, the water will overtake the forces of Strawbrington!" It was a reference to Parfait Girls.

"Strawbrington never had to deal with water damage!" Natsuki pushed the donut with her body, trying to reach the concrete steps to escape Sayori's wrath. With all the carefree feeling around us, it was like nothing bad even remotely happened today. Natsuki grabbed a towel from the cabinet and dried off, then proceeded to storm inside.

"She was right." I said. "Strawbrington never had to deal with water damage, just fires... and evil magic gingerbread men."

"But, Gajeton did!" She retorted splashing me again.

I dove below the water and grabbed her, lifting her up and dragging us both back down. The water rushed up my face slightly blurring my vision. I popped back out at the surface, Sayori's hair was drooping down and covering a portion of her face.

"No fair, you know I can't do that!"

"All is fair in love and war." I callously replied.

She pushed her lips to the side, in an instant her body flew towards me, "yargh!" I fell back catching her.

The amount of times my head bobbed up and down underwater, it looked as if she was trying to murder me.

"Okay, I give!" I said popping back to the surface. She let go, allowing me to stand. Little did she know I had my fingers crossed. "Just kidding!" I wrapped my arms around her stomach and started spinning around. "Say you give up!"

"Never!"

I started laughing as I slowed down, she did as well. "Then, you shall be my prisoner instead." I said.

"Oh no, I've been caught!" She said mockingly, causing us to both laugh again.

"H-hey guys, I'm gonna head home, I'm sorry I didn't do much..." Yuri was standing overhead of us. I forgot she was there, she blends in so well with the surroundings.

"N-no it's fine Yuri, whatever you're comfortable with... Hope you had fun." I said.

"Y-yeah, no I did, it was a nice change of pace for me... it was, exquisite."

"Well I'm glad, have a nice evening."

"Bye Yuri! See you on Monday!"

"Bye Sayori, bye Gaje."

Sayori turned around, bringing us face to face. "Do you think she actually enjoyed herself? She only sat outside..." She was worried, which I don't blame her for, I was in Yuri's position once, so I understood.

"I'm sure she did Sayori, people enjoy different things... Like me, I enjoy your presence."

"Me too."

I placed my hands on her hips, her hands made their way to my shoulder, like we were about to do the waltz. "Were you serious about me moving in? Would you really want that?"

"Yeah... of course I would, why wouldn't I?"

"I just wanted to know." I brushed her hair back, revealing her glistening forehead. "When Natsuki is safe and sound, I'll gather some of my stuff and I'll move in."

"We'll watch movies every night." She said.

"Have dinner together every night." I continued.

"Talk all night."

"Cuddle every night."

"Sleep with each other every night."

"Sex... some nights." I said, smirking nervously.

"Or... e-every night too." We stared into each others eyes. Her bright irises made me sane, like she controlled my mentality.

I looked over to the house, "d-do you want to... go upstairs?"

"Y-yeah... if you want."

We got out of the pool and dried up as much as we could. I took off my clothes and covered up with a towel. We moved through the hall, Ryan and Monika were sitting on the couch still.

"Where are you two off to?" Monika said, stopping us as we were beginning to climb the stairs.

"Uh... Sex. Bye!" I pulled Sayori along, not allowing Monika a second longer to respond.

* * *

Monika looked back to me, "did he say they were going to have sex?"

"Y-yeah, indeed he did." I said, confirming her suspicions. We sat quietly, assessing the situation. Finally, Monika broke the awkward silence.

"He's getting really bold." She said.

"Yeah... I never thought he'd say that kind of thing out of nowhere." More power to him. It was strange, seeing Gaje in the other world, being so reserved and careful with his words, compared to him now, not caring who hears him, or what they hear him say.

"I hope you guys have thick walls, Natsuki's not gonna have a fun night." Nat headed off to her room earlier, it was only six-forty, so I don't think she went to sleep. The walls were thick, Gaje showed that when he yelled at the top of his lungs last week, though all I heard was a hushed, "fuck!"

"Yeah, we do..." I turned the TV to a different channel, a commercial for _Renegade_ started playing.

"Speaking of _Renegade_." I said. "Are we meeting up at the movies or at one of our houses?"

"I think I'll swing by an hour before, just in case, don't want to be late."

"Okay, sounds like a plan, can't wait."

Monika yawned, "me either. Man, I'm getting a bit tired... it's a good thing my trusty man-pillow is here." Her head fell onto my arm. "You don't mind do you? You're a pretty comfortable pillow."

"I don't mind, at all." She closed her eyes and let the weight from her head transfer onto me. I moved slightly so we could both be comfortable. It gave me a sense of déjà vu, I thought back to the festival.

"Are you watching me sleep?" I quietly breathed through my nose. Each time, the answer was going to be yes. How could I not watch, it was like seeing a supernova, stunning, and deadly, as she melted my heart. I leaned my head back, she had the right idea, a nap would be nice.


	25. Moving Quick?

**_Lemon ahead lads, boys, lads._**

* * *

My confidence never amounted to much in this situation, seeing her nude, myself being naked. My mind was running a triathlon, half taking it seriously and the other bits full of jokes and worry.

I tried to say something, sexy. I had always heard dirty talk in every movie and video, it seemed normal. "Sayori..." I traced the outline of her sides with my hands. "Your body... is... I can't do it." I slouched, "I wanted to try talking dirty, but, it sounds stupid."

"N-no, try it, I like hearing your voice."

I tried again, bringing my hands around her hips and running them down her sides. "I love the softness of your skin, it's gentle against my hands." She smiled, I took that as a good comment so I tried another. "I love the sight of your... v-vagina?"

"Huh? That doesn't sound too convincing. Say it with some oomph!" She teased.

"What? Come on, this isn't easy. How are you not embarrassed?"

"Because it's just us and you like those things… keep going, come on."

"F-fine." I stood in temporary thought. What else was there? "I like..." My eyes drew to her chest, "your breasts. I like feeling them, massaging them." My voice was slightly shaken. She was on the verge of laughing.

"I-is that all?" She snickered.

"It's hard! You do it!" I said with a smile growing on my face.

"Eh..." she looked off in the distance.

"See. Not so easy is it?"

Her lips rose to the side, "I like how your hair tickles my body. And, I also like when you lick on my... b-breasts."

"You mean like... this?" I moved in closer and plopped my mouth on her breast, flicking my tongue back and forth.

"Y-yes."

I popped my mouth off of her tit. "I like it as well. They taste sweet." I grabbed a hold of her butt and switched places with her. I sat on the bed. She crawled on top of me, sitting on my stomach. She leaned in, we kissed, then we kissed again, becoming more aggressive, forcing our tongues into each others mouth.

"Is there anything, you want me to do for you?" She asked, planting her warm hand on my chest.

"Just be you." I said.

"Alright." She moved further down, she lightly pushed my dick against my stomach and sat on it. She started grinding on me. Her lips covered my penis like an upside down hot dog. The warm wetness coated the underlining of my dick. Every movement she made felt like I was in a permanent state of orgasm. Her breaths came out more forcefully as she moved quicker. Her slender body moved in a wavy motion, she held my sides, using me as leverage. She and I locked eyes, I gave a smile, she gave one back, but with a more tired and reddish expression. I brought my hands to her sides. She grabbed my hands mid grind and pulled them to her breast. "R-remember what I said?"

"Oh, y-yeah." I leaned up and began sucking on her boob, my tongue curling around her nipple and areola.

"A-ahn." She moaned, the force she applied on my sides stiffened, becoming tighter. She moved quicker, coating me in more of her juices. " _Huff, huff_..." Her exasperated breaths matched her movements, she slowly leaned down, growing closer to me, and her climax. In her last second before cumming, her hand reached out and grabbed a pillow, and she buried her face into it while moaning. " _Hah_... _hah_..." She huffed, like she had finished a 10 kilometer run. I carefully turned her over, taking the high ground. I slid the pillow under her head and I slowly planted my lips on her from head to stomach. I lifted her legs and I pressed into her groin, slowly moving myself inside. I exhaled, my eyes forcing themselves half-closed. She squeaked and I quickly brought my index finger to my mouth, if she was too loud someone would hear us.

"I-I can't control it." She said looking at me compassionately.

I moved slowly, my eyes jotted from hers to her body. Her arms were splayed out above her. I moved forward and interlocked our hands. I kept my harsh breaths quiet, and she did as well, the frantic sex made it all the hotter. The thought of one of the others hearing us, it aroused me, letting them all know that I made Sayori moan in pleasure, that I was responsible for her erotic sounds. My grip on her hands became tighter, my thrusts moved faster and our moans synced up. Her euphoric and agape mouth drove me to push quicker, building pressure in my member.

Sayori matched my sexual push, bringing her legs around the small of my back and squeezing my hands back. "C-come inside me!" She said, squeezing her eyes closed.

I moved as fast as I could, the bed started shaking more violently, the springs squeaked out as our skin slapped against each other. My body was shaking internally, the heat around my member was disappearing, I felt numb. But still, the feeling of orgasm shot to my head, sending my legs into a slight spasm when I released inside of her. I stood perfectly still and rose my head slowly, exhausted. " _Hah_... _ah_ , h-holy s-shit." I paused to swallow and catch my breath and caught her lips with mine. I pulled out of her, sending a wild shiver up my spine. "Wha-what got into you? I've never, heard you talk like that."

"I thought... _huff_ , it would help... d-did it?"

I chuckled, falling to her side, "did it? Yeah, it-it did..." She smiled lovingly and turned to me. She left herself open, I grabbed her up like a stuffed animal and attacked her with relentless smooches. "And I love you! _Mwah_!" She giggled like a child being tickled by their mother.

"Hahaha s-stop, you know I'm ticklish!"

"Of course, that's why I'm doing it!" I sent more kisses her way, but quickly held off, I was getting tired. " _Sigh_ , I love you..."

"I love you too." She pressed her mouth against my cheek, it tingled and left a spot of warmth.

I stared at her, my happiness turning into compassion. "You know I'd do anything for you. Lie, cry, bleed. I'd die for you before anything harmed you."

"No... don't do any of that, I don't want you to be in any pain, it would make me sad."

"Trust me, I won't do anything to hurt you..." I had a quick thought enter my head, "the only thing I would do that might hurt you... would be pregnancy. And, at this rate, it's a big possibility."

"Would you be scared?" She asked.

No, I would not, maybe if I had the same mindset from 2010, but not now. "No... I wouldn't be scared... I think, that'd actually make me happy."

"I'd be a little scared, they showed us a video in health class... it looked painful. But, if you were with me, I think I could push through it."

I hugged her and pressed her head against me. "I'll stay by your side, no matter."

"Forever?"

"Forever..."

* * *

I woke up the next morning, the aftermath of the party evident by the fallen streamers and cake covered coffee table. My vision was partially blocked by a blue sticky note attached to my forehead. I took it off. "Hey Ryan, I had to go home, sorry I didn't wake you, you just looked so adorable. I"ll see you later today for the movie, don't forget! XoXo ~ Monika."

I laid it on the table and got up, yawning as I walked to the kitchen. I poured a cup of cranberry juice and grabbed a cookies and cream pop-tart. Washing down the remains of the snack I dropped the cup into the sink and moved upstairs. It was eerily quiet, usually I would expect to hear the rustling giant in his room snoring. I opened my door, it was dark, the sun lighting only the middle of the floor.

Petey was lying in the bed, he awoke when I sat next to him. I took out my phone, slowly stroking his fur as I scrolled through an assortment of videos. I got more rough with my petting, and he got more excited and playful. He growled, whipping his head back to my hand, nibbling on my fingers. Gaje told me he was a biter. I poked at him with my claw hands. He grew tired of playing and just ignored me, planting his head on the blanket.

"Hey Ryan." Natsuki opened the door a crack, peeping inside. "C-could I grab some food? I'm kind of hungry."

"Yeah sure... why are you asking? You can get food whenever you want."

"I wasn't sure... thanks." She shut the door and I could hear the steps creaking as she walked away. I had nothing to do, so I decided to join her.

"C'mon Petey." We both trudged down the stairs. Natsuki was grunting, struggling to reach the top shelf in the fridge.

"Need a little help there?"

She turned back, "no! I got it." She jumped up, in her attempt to grab some juice she dropped everything else to the floor. Her head fell with her spirits. "I... don't got it." Petey attracted to the sounds ran into the kitchen and grabbed a squashed banana then skedaddled to the living room. Natsuki scrambled to grab all the fallen fruits and leftovers from last night.

"Goddammit Petey!" I ran towards him grabbing the banana from his mouth. He snapped at me but whined and let go. I put him outside and came back to help Natsuki. We salvaged what we could. "I guess we'll have to toss the other stuff." I said stuffing mashed deviled eggs into the garbage.

"Sorry." Natsuki apologized.

"It's alright, accidents happen. Don't worry too much about it..."

The kitchen returned to it's clear normalities. "What do you want to eat." I said chuckling.

"Do you have pancakes?"

"Yeah we have pancakes... here, I'll make em."

"Let's hope you're better at that than with the cupcakes." She could have said whatever, I know I am fantastic at baking.

"What do you mean? I did amazing... wait a minute, I'm the one who did most of the work!"

"Keep telling yourself that."

I shook my head, "taking credit for my work..." I grabbed the box of pancake mix. I added honey and vanilla extract. When they were fully made I cut up some strawberries and sprinkled some powdered sugar on top.

"Bon appétit." I placed the plate on the coffee table, she leaned forward and grabbed it. I watched over her as she scooped the pancakes in her mouth, ensuring she enjoyed them.

She swallowed and smacked her lips, "not bad... this time."

"See, I knew you'd enjoy my masterpiece, you should take some pointers... Nat."

"The only point I'm gonna take is this fork into your eye." She waved the utensil in my direction, glaring at me.

"Alright I surrender." I walked back to the kitchen, grabbing the other two plates I prepared for Gaje and Sayori. "I'll be right back Nat, gonna give Gaje and Sayori their plates."

"Sayori's here?"

"Yeah."

"O-oh, alright. In, the same room?"

"Yeah... what's the problem?"

"What do you mean, I don't have a problem with it... In the same bed?" I nodded my head. She lowered hers and poked at the pancakes, "that's nice."

I moved up the stairs, "hurry and finish that up, probably gonna read some of my manga if you want to join me later." Her head lifted back up, her eyes revitalized. She began shoveling the food down, nearly choking on one of the strawberry slices. I laughed to myself as she cleared her throat…

I knocked on Gaje's door, after a few seconds of listening in for a sound or groan I came to the conclusion that he and she were still most likely sleeping. _Guess I'll just put in on his desk._ I opened the door, forgetting one major fact from the night before. I shielded my eyes, realizing they were both naked. I tiptoed through the room and dropped the plate down on the desk, quickly retreating out.

I shook the memory out of my mind and went into my own room. Natsuki soon joined me, with a blip of visible excitement in her expression. I introduced her to the manga version of _One Piece_ , we read it through the first couple of chapters, passing the time until I had to get ready for Monika's arrival. About halfway through Gaje opened the door, standing in his underwear. "Thanks for ze food my dood, oh hey Nat." He waved and shut the door.

Natsuki looked at me, and I shared my expression of confusion. "Was he naked?" She asked.

"Pretty much…" I grabbed the next volume of the manga, I heard the shower squeak and laughter erupt from the bathroom. Natsuki groaned, she kept her attention on the manga and we blew through it. I put the set of manga back on my bookshelf. "Well, gonna have to stop for now, gotta get ready for my date."

"You're going on a date?" She asked condescendingly.

"Ha-ha, very funny. Yes, _I am_ , and I must get ready." I strode out of the room and cut the shower on, the bathroom was still a bit humid from earlier. I looked at the mirror and wiped it with my hands, making a mustache in the fogged up sections. I laughed it off and hopped in the shower. I stood under the water in thought, thinking about how the dates going to go, what we would do after the date. _Maybe we'll… have sex..? No, no. I don't think so, not that I don't want to… bah, stop thinking about it._ I washed out the soap from my hair, scrubbed my body down and washed that off as well.

Post dry, I got dressed and made my way downstairs. It was just Natsuki alone, so Gaje and Sayori had most likely returned to his bedroom. "So what's this date huh?" Natsuki asked. "Must be something fancy for you to get dressed up and fix your ragged hair."

"This is how I normally dress when I go out… though, I did fix myself up a bit more than usual. We're just going to the movies and then… something else after, I don't know yet."

"Sounds romantic…" She muttered.

"What did you say?"

"Huh, n-nothing." She shied away from me.

"What'd you say!?"

"Nothing!"

"You can tell me, come on!"

"It was nothing Ryan, lay off!"

"Are you sure? It sounded like it was something."

She rolled her eyes, "n-o-t-h-i-n-g. Ryan."

"I'll remember this…" I said in an evil tone, laughing menacingly.

"Shut up Ryan." She turned back to the TV. I sat by her, killing more time. Monika was swinging by in a few minutes, she text me earlier she was on her way.

 _Knock, knock, knock._

I turned the doorknob and opened it, Monika was standing spry on the other side. She was wearing a white dress that cut down to her knees, with a bow to match. "Hey Ryan, are you ready to go?"

I had to take a second to observe, to take in her beauty. "Y-you look, beautiful."

"I know that, you tell me that a lot, but that doesn't answer the question Ry."

"Y-yeah I'm ready."

"Have fun." Natsuki called out mockingly...

We arrived at the mall, it was packed that evening. Monika and I wormed through the crowd, making flash movements to cut into the movie theater. Monika brought up her phone, letting the ticket attendant scan the qr code.

"Theater one is the first room on your left, enjoy the film."

"Thanks, you too." I said, instantly regretting my words. I looked away and walked to the counter where all the snacks were.

"What are you getting?" Monika asked. She and I both stared at one of the various monitors above on the wall. They had slides with pictures of burgers and hot dogs.

"Uh..." I looked down at the counter and the candy displays inside of the glass. "I'm gonna get us a drink, and... maybe popcorn? What do you want?"

"I think just the drink... oh! Wait, get one of those." She leaned down and poked the glass, pointing at a packet of Airheads. We inched ahead in line, bringing us to the front. I told the lady behind the counter I wanted a large drink, (Monika and I both agreed on Coke) a large size popcorn, and the bag of airheads she wanted.

"That'll be $8 please." She said.

 _Damn, that's cheap._

I opened my wallet and handed her the money, finally returning the favor to Monika, albeit with a smaller sum of cash. We entered our designated theater. The room was mildly packed, but the best seats were wide open in the middle, this day was full of steals.

"Where do you want to sit?" I asked.

"There, that's usually where the sound is the best anyways." She read my mind...

We walked out of the theater, the movie was the general action packed mindless film. Though, it did contain an engaging story. "How'd you like it?" I asked Monika.

"I thought it was really good actually, not many action movies are able to sustain a captivating plot that balances well with the action sequences."

"I agree with you there. The movie was surprisingly good." We walked out to the mall, followed by the crowd of people leaving other movies and the same one. "So... what now?"

"I actually planned that out already, do you want to come over for a while?" It was already nine, so if I went now I might have to spend the night, I don't know my address and i'm not keen to walking home at midnight.

"Yeah sure, I'd love to."

"Great, come on." She reached out for my hand, pulling us through the mall again to leave. The night sky was covered in a bounty of clouds, the silhouette of the moon shone through like the sun through a curtain...

Turning the corner we arrived in her neighborhood, it was similar to ours, but the designs of the houses were more modern style. She opened the black fence, then unlocked the red door.

A puff of cool air blew over me as I crossed the threshold. Her house was spotless, the white walls had not even a hint of dust or stains. She had two red couches at an L shape in the middle of the living room with a small marble coffee table and rug in the middle of the room. I looked around as I slowly paced forward. She walked towards the kitchen, dropping her keys and purse on the counter. She caught me ogling at the furniture, "do you want a tour of the house?"

"Yeah, sure."

"This is the living room, obviously… And this is the kitchen." It was pretty much the same as ours back home, a decently sized island and a large fridge and stove. "This extra room is just where I read sometimes when It's early and raining outside, helps me think." It was a mostly empty section of the house, two bookshelves, a small rocking chair, and a… piano.

I brushed my hand over the black piano, it was covered in dust, having not been used in quite some time. "Do you play the piano?"

"Oh, not for some time." She looked at the dusty cover with me as if to reminisce of happier times. "Well, c'mon, you haven't seen upstairs yet." I followed her out of the room, looking back one more time at the piano. We walked through the hall, she pointed out the laundry room, which was a small area behind a small pair of closet doors, and the guest rooms at the end of the hall. "And now, my room." She said opening up her door.

I walked in shortly behind her. Her room was moderately lit up by a single lamp beside her bed. "Your room is really nice." I felt something press up against my back, I felt her arms cross over my shoulders.

"I'd hope so, I prepared it earlier this afternoon."

"Y-you did? Heh, t-thanks." I turned my head around to her alluring grin and deep glowing eyes. "Pre-prepared for w-what exactly?"

She trickled her hands across my shoulder blade, "I think you know." I turned around, she pushed closer, connecting our mouths. Her hand ran down my shirt, straddling my crotch as she simultaneously pushed me back onto her bed. My shoulders and chest felt immensely heavy, I was breathing heavier.

She turned her back to me, "unzip it."

"O-okay."

She slipped the dress off of her, standing with only her undergarments. With one movement she laid atop me aggressively lurching at my mouth. I was defenseless, through her exotic movements and moans she started pulling up my shirt. I helped out tossing it back.

I voluntarily undid my jeans button and zipper, shuffling them further down my leg. She slid down to the floor, dragging my underwear with her, it flew overhead. I lifted my head, feeling the pressure building in my neck. Her smug look as she stared at my crotch, it sent me mixed signals, was she judging it?

"I can help with that, so long as you can bring it back for another section."

I nodded, accepting her deal. She wrapped her hands around my shaft instantaneously. My head fell back, the cool touch of her fingers making my mind pulsate. A simple handjob for only a few seconds was enough to send me into another planet.

A second later I felt something softer encase the tip of my member, her soft lips. I tried to move my head up, she gently sucked me into her and released that pressure as she let me out, slamming my head back onto the bed. I clenched my fists, hearing the sounds of her salivating around the tip.

The look on my face, I can only imagine that she knew I was nearing my climax. But, that didn't stop her from moving, she curled her tongue around it massaging the tip. I had a momentary blackout as she pushed down all the way.

I opened my eyes feeling like I had just finished riding the world's fastest roller coaster. Her head popped up, she wiped her mouth on her arm and jumped on top of me.

"So?" She said, pushing her hands down on my shoulders. I had no true response, I made a croaking sound like I was the Grudge. She laughed, "speechless?"

"Yeah…" I responded in a lighter tone.

"I hope you're still up in arms, so to speak." She joked, looking down. I was in fact still erect, a mix of saliva and cum was shimmering at the base of it. She shook off her panties, revealing her bare vagina. My heart was a racing like Usain Bolt in his prime.

She arched her back flicking my members across her pussy lips. Her mouth opened as her eyes rolled from the feeling. "Here I go." She said, sliding down on top of me slowly, sending my head back to the constraint of her bed's covers.

"Ah, phew." She swallowed. "Okay." Her body rose letting my dick breathe for a moment, then sucking it back inside. It was heaven on earth, feeling her insides tightening and loosening in intervals.

"M-Monika, if you don't slow down... I-"

"Don't worry, I'm safe, cum if you want."

The tip of my dick was red hot, overheating like a mini-gun. I struggled to lift my arms to her butt. She dropped herself aggressively with every passing moment, I could hear the smacking of our skin, the wet squishiness from her vagina swallowing me.

I squeezed her butt, my body screamed at me to move. I pushed up into her as she rose up, catching her off guard. She fell slightly onto me, I pushed hard into her, my dick begged for the maximum pleasure. She moaned loudly, music to my ears, I went deeper, and deeper. I tightened my grip, bringing us in closer and emptied my load. I could feel my dick jumping inside of her, flexing uncontrollably.

She gently toppled onto me, our hot breaths and sweaty body collided, . "G-great performance..."

"That... w-was, amazing." I said back, finally catching my breath.

"A-amazing..? Hah, y-you really want to raise the stakes, d-don't you…" She said, dropping her head into the underneath of my neck. I looked down, barely catching the closed eyelids. She fell asleep. Wasn't that the man's job? I closed my eyes, I figured I should join her in that peace.


	26. Back to The Club

I awoke once more to Sayori's loving embrace, the smoothness of her skin against the rough of mine. I gently rubbed her arm and woke her up. I handed her, her uniform that she brought for the night and we both showered. The house was filled with the soothing sound of clothes flopping about as we got dressed. I woke Natsuki, she was a lot more tame in the mornings, not batting an eye at me barging right in. I opened the door to Ryan's room, he was awfully quiet that day. Though I came to find the bed empty, the covers were strewn about like someone had a night of rough sex. I figured something must've happened between him and Monika last night and that he spent the night. I prepared breakfast for all of my guests and served it. Finishing up our breakfast the three of us began our commute to the school, running into Ryan halfway there at the crosswalk. Sayori pointed him out. His hair was unkempt, more than usual, he looked like a homeless man. He greeted us and hurriedly ran towards the house. Natsuki looked at him strangely as he walked by, she had likely remembered where he was last night.

A little while longer and we had all arrived at our destination, crossing over the archway into the schoolyard. The grass was freshly cut, that familiar scent that most loved wafted through the fresh air. I hated that smell and it seemed that Natsuki did as well, both of us had our noses pinched as we crossed through the campus, receiving stares from the other students who remained outside. The halls were bustling, lively with tens of students talking, most having the same exact conversation. "Did you finish the homework?"

"Did we have a test today?"

I disliked silence, so a noisy area like this was almost therapeutic. Silence had a time and place for me, but it was rare that I ever wanted to be in my head without some sort of ambience playing around me. I guided Sayori and Natsuki through the crowds, becoming their personal bulldozer. A bulldozer that had developed social skills and was able to say, "excuse me," every so often. Natsuki split off from us as we neared the staircase, I continued on with Sayori bringing her to her Calculus class. Everyone in the class knew me, it was hard not to at this point, I was "that boy." Or "Sayori's boyfriend." No one knew my actual name, Sayori had tried telling them, but they never remembered. I leaned in and planted a kiss on her forehead, prompting an "oooh," from most of the first row in class. I laughed at them, and turned Sayori around, lightly pushing her in the room.

"Have fun. Babe." I could see her body tense up, and the students inside get riled up when I said that. I loved this school, the way people overreacted and blew things out of proportion. Their flamboyance was something to be desired.

During my trip back to the courtyard I had a sudden change of heart, I hit up Yuri, I text her to meet me in the library instead today, the chairs were comfier, and the air was lighter, you were able to breathe without your nose filling up with mucus. The doors that led to the library click and in came the violet haired sophisticated yet insecure girl. I called her over and we pushed our seats together, she took out the copies of the book from her bag, they were both in perfect condition, you could smell they were fresh off the printing press. The library had good stock, and so did she. I had to insert an earbud into my right ear, the silence in the room was uncomfortable. I didn't want to say anything, it felt like if I had, the room would implode on me. We turned the page, we were nearing the end of the story, the climax was at its most important part. I was excited to see how it ended, usually I could tell that Yuri was excited as well, though this time she seemed more perplexe. Normally, when the scenes became this intense or something shocking occurred, her breathing would become more shallow and her eyes would widen to new heights I thought impossible. The most defining aspect of her excitement in a novel was her grip, most times her thumbs would push down so intensely on the sides she would leave lasting imprints.

I closed the book, the final page had left me stunned. "I was _not_ expecting that." Yuri closed her book not a second later, gently placing it down on her lap. She seemed to be toying with the words in her mind. "How bout you Yuri? Did you see that coming?"

"Well…" Her finger tapped along the cover, the sound sent a shiver through my neck. "In chapter 27, if you really read between the lines, they foretold Clarence's betrayal, it was a stroke of genius and I haven't seen it pulled off so well, there were zero jarring things in it.

"So you saw it coming?" I asked, compacting her comment in my mind.

"Well no, I realized what they truly meant only after the twist was revealed, the shock value was more or less the same for me as it was for you."

"Ah." I leaned back and cracked my neck, releasing the built up stress. I leaned forward, book in hand and gave it over. She slipped it into the return bin then twirled back around, her skirt waving like a hula hoop. Before the world allowed her the comfort of sitting in a chair, the bell rang, stopping her in her tracks. She pulled her bag over the shoulder and pulled out her phone.

"I'll send you a list of books we can read." She said. " I think you'll really like some of the options that I have this time around, I believe they'll suit your tastes nicely."

"I look forward to it." I said. She smiled and walked out. I walked out not long after, but instead of taking my usual perch on the bench. I went around the school spying on the others. The first stop was Natsuki's cooking class. When it came to food, her energy was in another ballpark. I watched as she moved from counter to counter, mixing, chopping, cleaning, all the while her little crew struggled to keep up. The way she wrote her poems, I thought she would be more of an outcast, but the look on her teams face when they finished first. They respected her, not only for helping them win, but her work ethic was incredible.

Sayori, my happy, carefree, saint, was drawing to the best of her ability in art. The wall just outside of the room was like a bounty board for art pieces. There were several pieces that caught my eye, most notably the anime character and Sayori's pieces. All of her pieces always had in common the fact she used mainly warm colors, and when it was a cool color, it was only used to splash a bit of darkness in the background. Her forte seemed to be naturistic drawings and paintings. I was biased of course, her piece was number two on the gallery, and I believed it deserved the number one spot no matter the gallery. I switched the two, sealing the paper on the wall so no one could pick it up. I walked away, my heart warmer than it was before.

My final necessary stop was Miss Kiri's class, a personal favorite of mine. The hall outside of her room stank, the bathroom adjacent to her door was the culprit. I cleared out the smell, replacing it with a rosey aura instead. I took a whiff and sighed delightedly. I peered through the door window and kept my attention on Ryan. Monika and him were in the middle of a conversation. Every so often I would see her hand reach out for his, but Ryan didn't notice so she pulled back. "Hold her hand." I said, telepathically reaching Ryan's mind. His head instantly veered to the side, searching for the sounds origin, in his quest to find the source of said sound he noticed Monika's hand getting closer to his own. He reached out with his pinky barely touching hers, Monika wrapped her fingers around his trapping him in her grip like a venus fly trap. Both of their faces warmed up, and with that my job was done. Gaje, professional love guru, it had a nice ring to it. Better yet, Sage, the love guru.

I imagined copious amounts of viewers and fans coming up to me for advice, gaining godly knowledge in the area of romance. It made me chuckle, but I sent it to the back of my head, I wasn't a romance finatic anyways, but I did try my damndest. I opened the door to the courtyard, letting the familiar humidity waft over my body. It was like a blanket from the washer that just wouldn't dry, no matter the times you stuffed it in the drier. I got on the bench, lying on my side to prop my phone in the middle of the wooden slabs. I killed time, listening to music and watching videos. Soon the bell rang out and all I had to do was wait for Ryan join me on the bench. I sat up and looked to the cafeteria doors and he broke through at the same time. He squinted, the sun shone directly on his face, showing the buildup of grease in his hair. I moved over.

I could see what he was talking about after Sayori and I had sex, he was glowing. He wasn't different, but… he was. "So how was your date night with Monika?" I asked.

"It was nice." A simple answer was exactly what I expected from him, I needed to dive deeper for major details.

"Did you stay over at her house for the night?" I popped a tray into my lap, an exact replica of his. I wanted that curry, it looked delectable.

"Yeah, I went over. I stayed a bit too long so I decided to just spend the night." He brought his spork into his mouth, I could hear the squishing of the juicy beef and rice mash together.

"So what's her house like?" I asked, doing the same as he.

"Like ours." He swallowed, "pretty spacious, nice decor, comfy furniture."

" Sturdy as well?"

" I-I guess." Of course it would be, what kind of furniture wasn't?

"Sturdy enough for sex?"

His face shut down, installing a new update of calm and collected responses. His diminishing smile was evidence enough to let me know the answer, I could see the memories of last night flashing through his mind, figuratively, I didn't invade his brain. "Yes…" He exhaled, "it is…"

"My man!" I exclaimed, causing him to cover up his face. "Congrats I guess."

"Thanks..." He said in a monotone voice.

"Was it gud?" we talked about this very scenario back in our old world. But I guess the reality of the situation weighed on him a lot more than he originally expected. I reflected on my own time with Sayori. Reality was truly much more satisfying than our imaginations.

"Good doesn't even come close." He said with a smile as he stared off into the grass.

I felt a buzz in my pocket, I held up a finger, "hold on, Sayori texted me." I swiped up, opening my messages. There was a picture of red ribbons splayed out on her bed, a small text bubble below it read, "your present is at my house, you'll have to come get it after school."

"Okay, after I drop off Nat and Ryan, first thing on my agenda." I sent the message and pocketed the phone. I had no idea what the ribbons had to do with present besides maybe used as wrapping for the said present, but, knowing Sayori it was probably some spur-of-the-moment improv. I turned back to Ryan, I laid off on the intimate questions, I knew he wasn't exactly an open book about this type of stuff. We finished our lunches, "take mine with you!" I begged as he stood. I stacked the trays and handed it back, "see you at the Literature Club." He vanished behind the double doors and the bell rang out, summoning him to his classes. Meanwhile a bell of my own rang out in my head, summoning me to the land of sleep...

I could hear a loud buzz whirring in my ears, no matter where I looked in the dark void I couldn't find the cause. My eyes fluttered open, I held my hands up blocking the sunshine. Another buzz erupted from my pocket, I frantically reached for my phone. "Where are you at? Gaje?" Sayori had been sending me concerned texts. I rolled off the bench and blinked to the third floor of the school. I sprinted across the hall and opened the door, breathing heavily to provide backup to my story. "Sorry I'm late! I was caught up in class." I took my seat beside Sayori.

"Where were you?" She asked sadly.

"Fell asleep, sorry. I didn't see your messages til just a second ago." I lowered my eyes apologetically and picked up her hand. "I'll make it up to you." I kissed the back of her hand, "promise."

My kiss was met with an empathetic smile, "you don't have to… I was just worried is all."

I held my hand over my heart and raised the other. "Nope, I am going to make amends, no ifs, ands, or buts."

She laughed, "okay."

During my apology, Monika had managed to make her way to the podium. She clacked her pen against the stand grabbing everyone's attention. "Alright everyone, I've had enough time to go over what we'll be doing for the rest of the week." She pulled out a clipboard and began listing off our plans. Monday and Wednesday we would be reading collectively, Tuesday and Thursday we would write short stories then read them together the following week, and on Friday we would write a poem like before to share. Within a second Sayori had slapped a sheet of loose leaf paper onto her desk to get a headstart on her poem.

"So what are we doing today? Reading?" I asked. She nodded slightly, pulling out a small plastic bucket by the handle. It was white, covered in multicolored ink blots. Inside it was at least a hundred or less pieces of small paper slips. Each one had a book title on it.

"I'm going to take out two slips and we'll all take a vote to decide what we want to read to the end." She did exactly as she said and we all voted like she wanted, the end result being a small novel titled _The Crowned Child_. Monika left the room momentarily when our vote was finished, coming back with copies of said book, I read over the blurb, it was about the coronation of a young boy to become king of his country. I loved the medieval ages and all things surrounding it. She passed the books out, sharing a loving smile when reaching Ryan's desk. She got back to the podium and opened the book to begin reading. We were popcorn reading, after one of us finished reading we would pick the next person to read. Natsuki and Yuri were not keen on reading out loud, but with the overwhelming amount of support and everyone else doing it, they had to give in. And as much as I loved all of them, hearing Natsuki try to read, but pausing after every word, made me want to burst my eardrum with a screwdriver.

"What's wrong?" Asked Sayori, noticing my painful frown as I squeezed my cheek into the desk.

"Just a headache." I said.

Our books closed, ranging from Natsuki's loud slam of even pages, to Yuri's careful, meticulous sealing of the bound novel. We passed them up to Ryan and he handed it off to Monika. She set them inside of the teacher's desk for safekeeping.

"Alright guys, club dismissed. Have a pleasant afternoon." Monika said.

As we all began packing our things, she made her move to Ryan's side. Sparks flying was inaccurate, describing their relationship. Lava bubbles was more accurate, spurts of love bursting, those who interfered would surely be burned. Nat, Sayori, and I left.

Within the hour we arrived at Sayori's house. "I'll see you soon!" She said, promptly closing the gate and running inside. Nat and I continued down the sidewalk, I pushed open the door, the wind resistance putting up a good fight. I leaned down to pick up a small white envelope I noticed on the floor, it was a letter from the police department getting back in touch with us. I read it out to her, they were requesting Natsuki's attendance for the trial of her father. She waited for me to finish before running into the kitchen, grabbing my packet of pudding then silently making her way to her room. I understood that she was a bit troubled, she would have to see her father for the first time since she left. But to take all of my pudding? I was devastated.

I walked to my room and changed out of my clothes, I was bubbling with curiosity at what Sayori's present would be. My mind went to things way out of her capability, but they were still fun to imagine. The door downstairs shut, Ryan announced his arrival. I left my room and knocked on Natsuki's door. "Nat? I'll be back, I'm going over to Sayori's for a bit, feel free to eat whatever to your heart's content." An answer of silence was all I received, but she had to have heard me, so I went downstairs. "You heard me right?" I asked.

Ryan looked over the top of his phone at me. "Yeah."

"Make sure to let Petey back in if I'm not home by nightfall." I pulled my jacket overhead, it had gotten pretty windy the past couple of days, it always ruined my hair. I pulled the hood up and grabbed my keys off the rack. "Peace."

I pushed open the gate to Sayori's yard, I let her know that I was on my way. I shut the door behind me as I entered her home, "I'm here!" I yelled, I didn't want to spook her. The eerie silence in her house was like a memorial service, it was cryptic and stirred up uneasy feelings in my head. My feet crushed the wood of the stairs into tears. "Sayori?" I called out endearingly. She didn't respond. My heart thumped rapidly as I neared her closed door, my hands shook as I reached out to the doorknob. I had to reason with myself, she was fine, she had to be, I didn't notice anything off with her emotions.

I turned the doorknob and pushed past into the room, it was as dark as a shadow, I could tell where everything was, but the details were blurred. "Sayori?" I called once more.

"Over here!" She called. My eyes shot to her bed, she was under the bed covers, her head poking out like a whack-a-mole.

I flipped on the light. "Why're you in bed? I thought I was getting a present…"

"You are." Her eyes darted to the covers, "pull off the blanket."

I moved to the bed, grabbing the corner of the comforter and lifting it off of her. "Oh. Wow." At least I figured out what the ribbons were for. Her body was neatly wrapped in red velvet, covering her most sensitive areas, the color of red instantly sent blood rushing through my body "How did you… do all of this?" I gestured to her body.

"I read up on it yesterday… It wasn't supposed to be like this, but after what you said on Saturday... " She shuffled about, getting closer to me. "Don't you want to unwrap your gift?" She looked so defenseless, so cute, the very fact that she did this, for _me_ , made me happy.

"I don't know… the wrapping is almost too good to ruin, I think I might just keep the packaging to be honest."

"Huh?" She flopped about, rocking the bed with her motions, "c'mon Gaje that isn't funny, my back itches…"

"Allow me then." I turned her on her stomach and proceeded to scratch her back all over, watching her face to see if I was hitting the right point.

"Lower!" She said, her head sinking into the pillow. I moved to the small of her back and scratched around, her eyes closed with bliss. "Ah… that's the spot… ah!" I moved my hands down to her butt and slowly cupped her cheeks. She looked up to me, "your hands are cold!" That was the winds fault, I couldn't tell, they felt warm to me.

"You know, you're completely helpless, there's nothing stopping me from tickling you to the ends of the earth." Her relaxed expression cracked as I ran my hands around her sides and neck, brutally attacking her tickle zones. She playfully wiggled around trying to cover up the spots. When my hand would reach up to her neck, she would cover it up with her head. The present had backfired on her.

I stopped, our laughs coming to an end. "Okay, I'll untie you now." I twisted and pulled the ribbon, strewing it along my arm as the velvet came. I bit down on the ribbon like a matador holding a rose. Her arms had been freed, she had indents across them, evidence left by the constricting cloth.

I used the ribbon as a feather, sensually brushing it across her stomach and breasts. I tossed the ribbon to the floor, along with my clothes. I got into the bed with her, nuzzling my cheek into hers. "Thanks for the present." I said, sealing her lips with mine. I lifted the covers and disappeared under.

"What are you doing?" She peaked under the blanket.

"Making amends, remember?" The covers dropped and I began the ritualistic behaviors I had developed with her. The moaning, the subtle movements from her legs, it was my national anthem, the Beethoven to my piano. I came back up, her breaths were stabilizing.

"Have I earned your forgiveness?"

She nodded quickly, "yeah, now... do me."

It was adorable watching her avoid the word fuck. I did as she commanded, our bodies connected, our mouths and noses pressed up against each other, and our breaths tickled the others skin. If this had been any other task, the towel would have been long thrown in. The movements became static as the bomb's fuse neared fizzled its end. Her nails dug into my sides, the stings indicating I should do more. I pushed fully, exhaling loudly, barely able to catch my full breath. I sat stationary, looking into her eyes. I moved off of her and flipped to my back beside her, swallowing and breathing slowly to calm my heart. Her head took refuge on my arm. "Happy... birthday." She said and I looked to her with a smile.

"Thank you."


	27. Preparations

_A/N: Hello again everyone, just as always, a constant thank you to those of you reading. And reviewing. Secondly, I'm going to start going back through other chapters, revising again. Nothing overall will change, just more details will be put in, which is something I have trouble doing in my mind._

* * *

I rolled out of bed, the covers following along until I lifted them off. The room was darker than the sky during a hurricane. Sayori was still pleasantly sleeping on the right side of the bed, rolled up like a ball of dough. Her soft breathing entered my mind, clearing my paranoia. When it came to stuff like this I was always fearful something might happen. When I was back in the other world I couldn't sleep without checking up on other people. I kept my eye on the blanket, it rose with her breaths, calming me. I tiptoed out of the room, still watching her. I sighed a sigh of relief and went to take a leak.

I came back, the light from the hallway trickling through in spots. Sayori muttered something and turned over on her side, facing the opposite direction. I couldn't think of a better place I'd rather be. When I was in 10th grade, I had an assignment. This assignment requested of us our description of the most beautiful place in the world. I described a forest, a small dirt path that you walked over, leaves crunched under your feet as you moved through. Trees above covered the sunlight, forcing it through small spotlights. However, I look at Sayori, that place pales in comparison. I had no idea what true beauty was until I laid my eyes upon her.

I crawled into the bed alongside her, latching onto her back and crossing my arms over. She was soft, as always. The warmth from her transferred onto my stomach, bringing me to a state of inner bliss, a state of wholeness. Sleep was considered a blessing by most, it let your mind rest, but to me, sleep was a curse. It was there to take my precious time, to stop my viewing of an angel too precious for this world's eyes. I cradled my head into the crook of her neck, as much as I wanted to stay awake, the prospect of sleep, like the devil, made an offer I couldn't refuse. The burden of my heavy eyelids took their toll, dropping down like blinds slamming onto a window sill.

The crook of her neck cradled my chin. As much as I tried to stay awake to listen to her soothing breaths, the sandman had a much different plan, planting the seeds of slumber in the corneas of my eyes. The burden of heavy lids took their toll, dropping them down over like window blinds.

"Gaje." I heard the angelic calling of Sayori's spirit and felt the ethereal touch of her ghost caressing my cheeks. "Gaje, wake up." Her calls gained volume, enough to shatter my falsehood of peace, true peace was waiting for me to come to her. True peace was my everything. I opened my eyes, Sayori's face was directly above me, happily smiling and awaiting. "Gotta get ready for school." She said. She moved off the bed, already dressed in her uniform. I looked to the window, in disbelief that it had already been that long. The light snuck in through every hole, every dip in the blinds, it was grey, yet bright.

I picked my clothes up from the floor, covering my naked body with something until I got to the house. It was a quarter to seven, enough time to make some breakfast and get home to check on the other two. I walked out of the room to the smell of smoke and meat. I reached the base of the stairs, seeing Sayori moving back and forth between the kitchen and table, depositing small amounts of food on the two plates that sat upon it. I surprised her at the stove with a hug, "thanks." I said pushing my head onto her shoulder. I let go, took my seat and waited for her, I didn't want to eat alone.

The chair, trying it's best Chewbacca impression, pulled out, something I could not do. My not so subtle sexual innuendos behind, she sat on the chair, her hair swaying as she moved forward. We exchanged loving smiles and started eating. The bacon was just as she preferred, crispy with minimal amounts of squishiness. It was the opposite of what I liked, but that's what made it special. I learned to appreciate things she did. I grabbed a cup of orange juice from the middle of the table and chugged it down, depleting it faster than a water pump. With an "ah," I expressed my taste for the drink and brought more food to the recently coated palette

She took of my plate as I finished, putting it into her dishwasher. I kissed her and started to leave, "see you in a bit."

"See ya." She waved from the kitchen.

I walked along the sidewalk. I had a habit of walking without picking up my feet, which resulted in a lot of moments of me tripping over myself. The sky looked to be covered in a thick blanket of purple-grey clouds. It was always sunny, so every time it rained, it was always a great change of pace. I pulled the house keys from my pocket and unlocked the door, meeting my young pup, Petey, on the other side. His fur was smooth, speckled in was spots of dirt from his recent expeditions in the yard. I brushed by him and walked up the stairs, thinking of a way to wake up the pair who were still sleeping. The perfect way to lure them out of their lulled deaths was apparently a simple "wake up."

They weren't particularly heavy sleepers. Though, I did disappoint when they came downstairs to the absence of freshly made breakfast, they had become expectant of it. Ryan took matters into his own hand, grabbing a bagel and smothering it in cream cheese, that Natsuki described as "maggot droppings." A distasteful comment, but not unexpected from the sweet tooth crazed tsundere. She didn't seem to be in a sour mood however, despite the letter we got yesterday.

I sat on the recliner while they ate their early morning snacks. I rocked back and forth, closing my eyes and exploring the inner workings of my brain. The court date was this Friday, thankfully a few hours after school. Friday was an eventful day, we'd be sharing our poems for the first time in a long while, going to court, and then I would be moving in with Sayori that night if all goes well. I had already thought through what I would bring. Petey, some clothes, and a small amount of personal effects. I had to leave behind the pillow of Sayori, however I don't think she'd care honestly. If anything she might think it's cute and ask for one of me.

"Get up marshmallow." Natsuki stopped the rocking of the chair. My newfound nickname was one to describe my pudginess after eating too much. "Let's go." She cocked her head, gesturing to the door. I got up and moved into formation, just behind Ryan in our military lineup. He was engorging himself on the remnants of his bagel, while simultaneously adjusting his bag straps as to not fall from his shoulders. We walked out, I locked the door and followed them along to Sayori's. Then to the school.

Everything from then was trivial, a routine I had become so accustomed to that my mind instinctually knew what to do; my read with Yuri, the lazing about out in the courtyard watching videos til lunchtime, and the eventual meetup at the club. The club had always felt like a getaway from a getaway, a safe zone inside of a larger safe zone.

Today we had written our short stories, or well, we started on it. At the end of the club there was a slight kink in the submission area. Yuri, Natsuki, and I were all reluctant to pass it forward, no matter the amount of times we were assured by the others. We always had another excuse to pull out of our ass to not hand it over. Thankfully, while we were all bickering Monika swooped in and grabbed them covertly. Yuri looked at the stack of papers as if it was the most embarrassing thing she had ever written, the feeling was mutual for Nat and I.

Nat played it off better than the rest of us. "I was just trying to spare you guys from my awesome writing, but oh well. Blame Monika, not me." She said, shrugging.

I rolled my eyes at her and picked up my stuff to leave, exiting the room with the others and making our journey back home. I stopped by at Sayori's to chill for a couple of hours, mostly playing games under the blankets in her room. She had a bunch of old arcade games that I used to play when I was younger, most notably _Pong_.

I discovered she had a competitive side to her that was unexpected, but a fun sight. In the midst of our first games of _Pong_ , she would wait for the ball to get near my side and swat the controller from my hand "accidentally." I said that I believed her, to lure her into my trap. The next round when she went for it again I light tackled her to the bed, causing us to roll around in a cocoon of controller wires and blankets. The fun and laughter was cut short by the sound of something crashing to the floor, the console.

We both stared down at it, too afraid to determine its life. The game on the screen was frozen, making a loud humming noise. I got up from the bed and leaned down to pick up the console. I repaired any damage it may have had and lifted it up to the roof like a found buried treasure. "It's okay!" I exclaimed.

"Yay!" Sayori cheered with me, her arms protruding from under the blanket.

After a few more minutes I returned home, it had gotten late and she had to study for an upcoming test. I didn't want to distract her, that's what I told her, and I wasn't wrong. If I had stayed I doubt she would get far without us doing something.

I opened the door to the house, Ryan and Natsuki were slouched on the couch, watching the TV. They seemed to have formed some sort of pact, one that required them to be either reading a manga or watching an anime at home together. It was all they ever did, and it was a fantastic lifestyle in my opinion, entertainment 24/7 with no downtime of boredom.

They both greeted me plainly, no joke, no change in tone, just utter normalcy. It was a bit underwhelming, usually I'd get a mocking comment from Natsuki, I came to expect it, no matter how much I disliked her attitude at times. Ryan I didn't expect anything new, he was the same as always, dull and expressionless on the outside, just like me most of the time. But on the inside I knew he had a big smile, pulled by wires connected to his love with Monika.

I walked into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water. "Y'all already eat?" I asked, leaning into the fridge.

"Nope. Not yet." Ryan answered. I looked to the stove, it was nearly nine. Either that show was really good and they couldn't drop it for whatever reason, or they just lost track of time. Looking at them, I couldn't understand why Ryan liked Monika over Natsuki, they had a lot in common. I untwisted the cap of my water and chugged some down.

"What do you guys want?" I asked, putting the bottle on the counter.

"Anything." Natsuki instantly said. They were like mindless drones, staring into the screen, not moving their body except to breath or talk. I felt like I was surrounded by robots. I pulled out a box of pizza from the freezer and put it onto a pan after preheating the oven.

"Pizza it is then." I said.

"Make sure not to dirty it with your filthy hands." That's what I wanted, Natsuki's insults.

"Hey." I paused, trying to think of a comeback. "At least my hands are cleaner than your face." It wasn't very good, but it would do.

"Yeah, okay, thanks Gaje." She brushed my comment off, I wasn't sure she had even heard me entirely. I shook my head and retreated to my room. If they wanted the pizza they'd make it. Or, they'd burn down the house, in which case, I had insurance and a backup plan, whereas they did not. I twirled around and fell to my bed, landing on something. I arched my back and shuffled around with my hand to pick up the object.

"Hello Sayori." I picked up the pillow I had created in my sleep a while back. "Sorry, you need to study." I placed the pillow atop the mountain I had created of larger pillows. I laid myself out, legs flat, arms to the side. I wasn't sure what to do, the things I thought of were not possible at the time. Especially since one of the things in my mind was busy. The roof was a suitable opponent, "looks like it's just you and me old friend." Closing one eye and reaching a hand out, I began to count the previous details I might've missed last time. 217 collective out of place markings, dust, squashed insects, spider webs, and other unidentifiable markings.

"Something save me from this boredom!" I called out, kicking my legs and rustling the bed. The bedroom door began opening, my prayers seemed to have been answered. "Thank you Gaje." I said quietly to myself. My head rose, Ryan was poking through the cracked door. "Yes?"

He had a slice of pizza in hand, some already in his mouth. "Are you gonna eat some?" He lifted it up to show the food.

"No, I already ate. And Sayori made me some food as well."

"Oh. Oh..." He realized what I had meant. "Well... d-do you have a minute?"

"Doesn't seem like I'm busy, does it?" I lifted my arms and looked around myself. "I'm just dying here alone, like the rest of humanity."

He shut the door behind him and rolled himself and the chair from my desk to the bedside. He was about a foot away from my face, munching on the greasy bread, tomato sauce, and cheese combo. The smell was starting to ruin my mood, I had the smell of cinnamon from Sayori already planted upon my nostrils. "Ryan, get that away from me." I covered my nose with my shirt.

He moved back an inch, "k." He finished the slice and turned back to me with sauce on his upper lip. "I want to take Monika out somewhere, to a nice place. But, there's nothing around here." Finally, something I could do. I sat up, using Mount St. Pillow as support.

"So what do you want me to do? Make a new r-" I stopped, of course he did, and I would, even if it wasn't what he wanted. "Hold on." I pulled my phone out and opened it to a map of the city. I recalled that the times we went to the mall and ice rink there was an empty area that was just asphalt and open space. A restaurant might be out of place there, but if it was famous enough eventually the surrounding areas would suit the architectural needs.

I zoomed into the area, I pressed my hand over the screen. A building began forming on the area, it looked similar to a Japanese style temple. The building was fully red, with beige roll blinders on every window. The building itself looked intimidating to the outsider perspective, but it also seemed welcoming by the warm colors and lamps that covered the outer walls.

I smiled, then turned the screen to Ryan. "What do you think?"

He leaned in, squinting his eyes to see it clearly. "Wow, it looks... amazing." Ryan wasn't the best person to come to for describing how places made you feel. I turned it back to me. He thought that the restaurant was the end of my creative input, but no, many surprised awaited him.

'So when would you like to go? Give me the date and time." I stopped. "Actually, you should talk it over with Monika first, call her. Now!"

"Like right now?" He leaned back in the chair.

I was irate, how was I not clear. "I didn't stutter, yes now!" I clenched my fists and shook them in my own face.

He jumped back and his hands up, fending of my wrath, "alright, alright! My bad." He reached for his pocket like this during a police stop. He pulled it out slowly and brought it to his ear after dialing Monika. I hear the ringing, as well as the sudden cut-off from the interjection of a certain club president.

"H-hey Monika, are you busy right now?" He paused, I could barely make out anything she said.

"No I'm free, what's up?"

"I was wondering, if you'd like to go with me to _Kami No Chinmi_." It was the name of the restaurant, which roughly translated to God's Delicacy, paying homage to myself. I missed what she said in response, but it must've been good, Ryan's lips curled up in a smile. "Alright then, how's Saturday?"

She agreed and they ended the call with Ryan letting her know what time they'd go. He was practically bursting with energy, the only reason I could tell was the slight fidget he had in his foot. "It's set then." He said. "Now all I need is something to we-"

I stopped him right then, a single hand raised to his eyes. "Way ahead of you." I chucked the phone to the bed and jumped up. "This place is the pinnacle of high dining Ryan." I put on a full one piece suit and matching black pants in a second. "Stand Ryan, stand!" I clapped my hands, commanding his quickness. He stood, blankly staring. "Now, I have prepared for ju, a suit of highest quality, made from the best of fabrics, freshly made, by yours truly." I pulled a hanger from out of my collar, a white tux, and laid it out on the bed, then black pants to contrast the look. I pulled out a corsage that was complete with silk roses, hunter green and silver trimming, silver leaves that popped, and a stretch wristband; all to grace Monika's arm and make that night, one to remember. Or it would all go down in flames and the silver lining would be that she'd have this stylish arm piece. "So we've got the tux, the pants, the tie, the stylish rose for the flap of ze jacket, and the pièce de résistance, a corsage for your lovely." I bowed, impressed, he had to have been.

"I'm speechless Gaje, it looks…" Truly, truly speechless. I could see him trying to formulate the words, but every time, the words were lost in a fit of bedazzlement.

"Don't hold your applause." I smugly said, stroking my beard snobbishly. He looked at me as if to say "shut up." I stopped and changed back into my regular clothing. I bunched up his stuff and handed it over, resting the boxed corsage atop everything. "Don't worry about the flowers, they never die." He jerked his head around, the hanger kept poking at his neck.

"Thanks Gaje, I am in your debt."

I pushed him out of the room, hurrying him before Natsuki came. "You always have been." I said before shutting the door.


	28. Friday

The next few days blew by in a flash, what with me telling Yuri and Monika of Friday's events and me moving in with Sayori. Monika had decided to cancel this Friday's meeting, stating that "this is more important." And it was. My moving in all depended on how the case went, which meant it was a certainty that it would happen. The evidence was clear and concise, no chance the jury would see past that. The demon of a father Nat had would be punished to the extent he deserved.

Initially, in talking with Natsuki over the next days I expected her to be weary, maybe even fearful of seeing her father, it'd make sense. But, she wasn't. She didn't care if she had to look him dead in the eye, they were through as family. Though Natsuki hid behind her wall of insecurity-all of that anger she used-when I questioned her about her father she spoke in a calm manner as if she was answering a simple questionnaire article to figure out your element. "He's not the father I loved as a child." She had said.

When Friday had arrived, the six of us met up after school ended in the school yard. We decided that it best we go to my house for a while before we needed to leave. My soon to be ex-house had become a sort of hotspot for us to hang out. We arrived at the house, where upon Sayori and Natsuki disappeared into Nat's room.

I let Natsuki know a day prior that she would have to dress nicely, no exceptions. I was becoming my mother. I wasn't a stickler for fashion, but she had instilled in me to always dress nicely for formal events or stuff like this. Sayori let her borrow a dress skirt she had. It was a dark shade of pink, magenta almost. It made her stand out from the rest of us who were still wearing our school uniforms.

When we arrived at the court, we searched around for a short while. The subpoena that Natsuki had received listed out our specific courtroom number, and we found it not long after. "Courtroom 34." I opened the large oak wood doors, they loudly creaked like a falling drawbridge through the halls and aisle that cut through the middle of the courtroom. Those who had already been seated looked to us curiously. It was strange to see six high school students entering a courtroom. Their gazes stopped, returning to their previous tasks. A few people were tending to their sons and daughters, keeping them quiet and preoccupied and the rest were silently tapping away at their phones. I had grown to like kids, when I was younger I could never entertain the thought of having one. But finding a person who I couldn't see myself without changed all of that.

The six of us moved to the front row, just behind the bar that separated the spectators and court officials. The jury had begun to fill up just after we arrived, I watched as the bailiff grilled them all to assure they held no bias towards any singular group or person. He left to his usual spot after confirming their benevolence. The door that he seemed to be guarding was a small wooden door with crystallized glass. You couldn't tell who was behind it, but you would definitely see their shadow.

I wasn't expecting us to be in a courtroom like this. It elicited quite a few emotions from me, mostly awe. The architecture of courtrooms always looked cool to me. The jurors section, the judge's podium, and the witness stand, they all looked so well made. I could smell the strong scent of varnish from the judges podium, made evident by its unnatural shine.

Suddenly I heard the doorknob by the bailiff turning, and he stepped aside. The lawyer, prosecutor, and Natsuki's father entered the room, bringing in a level of tension that I could feel on my shoulders. The lawyer, Nat's father, and the prosecutor quickly moved over to their individual sides. The prosecutor grabbed Natsuki's attention, asking her to come up to the table with him. We all moved our legs so she could slither through.

The bailiff walked to the center of the room, nicely requesting that we "all rise." The door opened once more, an intimidating older man, presumably the judge, entered. He was balding, but he held onto a few loose strands. He was wearing a long flowing grey robe with golden lining on the outer sides. "Honorable Judge Trippan residing for courtroom 34." The bailiff gestured to the judge, bring our attention to him with the fullest amount of respect we could offer.

"You may all be seated." The judge said, taking his own seat. "Opening statements please." The lawyer stood first, giving a rundown of the case at hand as well as some of the evidence they'd been given. I could see the look in his eyes, he knew that Nat's father was guilty. He finished, allowing the prosecutor a chance to bleed the empathy from the jury, telling Natsuki's story and her anguish. He was a good actor, and great at manipulating the jury.

Natsuki was called to the stand as their first and only witness. She went through, telling about some of the days that she had been beaten and traumatized. She stood firm, but the stares that came from everyone began to weigh on her. She stopped several times over her full testimony to take long breaths and calm her nerves.

When she finished, the lawyer stood to question her. "This court has heard your story." He looked in our direction, to grab the attention of the room. "But I must ask miss, why did it take you so long to report your father's crime?" His tone of voice showed no ill will.

"I-I was afraid." Nat answered.

"Afraid of her father." He turned to the jury, "members of the jury, this man." He pointed directly at her father, he had passed out during the first few minutes of the trial. "This man, beat, starved, and verbally assaulted his daughter on a daily basis. I may be his defense attorney and as such it is my job to defend him, but I can not in good will call myself a lawyer if I refuse to fight for justice. This man, is a monster. That is all your honor." He nodded, warmly smiling in Nat's direction.

The judge allowed Natsuki to step down. She slowly took her seat next to the prosecutor. Monika and Sayori whispered to her, "are you alright?" "You did great." To which Natsuki nodded her head slowly. The jury began leaving the room to decide the fate of her father. They came back as quickly as they had left.

"Has the jury come to a verdict?" Judge Trippan asked.

"We have your honor. We find the defendant, guilty of all charges."

The judge accepted their answer and looked to Nat's father. "Mr. Wilber, will you please wake the defendant." Natsuki's father's head rose up, looking around the room as if he was lost.

"You are hereby sentenced to 20 years in prison, with no chance of parole."

There were whispers behind us, none of them surprised. "He deserved longer." "Will that girl be alright?" "He doesn't even know where he is the strung out bastard."

"Court dismissed, bailiff please take him away." The judge rose up.

"Yes sir." The bailiff walked to the table and grabbed Nat's dad and took him through the door, out of sight.

I was relieved, there was a 99% conviction chance, and yet I still had a slither of worry in my heart. Natsuki stood up, thanking the prosecutor and lawyer for their help. She walked over to us, a small smile growing on her lips. "So that's it." She said.

"That's it." I replied. "Come on, let's get going."

We all stood and exited the courtroom. The girls chatted among themselves, giving Natsuki their best wishes and congratulations, while I moved ahead to get outside. The weather hadn't changed much from this morning, partly cloudy. We sat on the stone steps for a while, relaxing and talking.

Natsuki sat against the railing, Yuri was the first to walk over to her side. "I'm glad you're finally safe Natsuki. I apologize for not noticing before, I hope you don't think of me as a worse friend." Yuri somehow always managed to turn things on herself, seeming inferior or guilty.

"Yuri, quit being a dummy." Natsuki punched her leg.

"H-huh? Why'd you do that for?"

"Don't blame yourself for what happened. It's not your fault."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"And that's another thing, quit apologizing! You have nothing to be sorry for." It was quite the spectacle if I'm being frank. It was tantalizing to see them not arguing, but encouraging the other. It should have been the other way around, but it still worked.

"I..." Yuri stopped and smiled. "Okay."

Sayori squeezed my arm, "Natsuki's all better now, so you can move in right?" She bounced like a spring.

"Yeah, I can."

"Yay!" I could feel the beat of her heart on my arm. She was excited, more than I thought possible. And so was I.

"Hey guys, I have to go, my aunt is leaving soon and I have to babysit, sor-" Yuri stopped herself noticing Natsuki's glare. "I-I'll see you guys Monday."

"Bye Yuri!" Sayori said. "See you Monday!"

Natsuki stood up and walked back over to the rest of us, "I'm hungry can we go back home now?"

"Ditto." Ryan said.

"Yeah I guess." I looked to Sayori. "I have to get all of my stuff anyways."

"Oh right, you two are moving in, it totally slipped my mind." Monika moved in closer, "I'm sure someone's excited." Her eyes ran over Sayori's blushing cheeks.

"Yeah, we both are." I said.

"Well, you guys enjoy your night together." She gave Ryan a kiss on the cheek, "I'll see you tomorrow night Ry. Bye everyone, see you on Monday, don't forget your poems!" She walked down the steps.

Ryan waved slowly, "see ya tomorrow..."

I brought the last box in and set it on the others I had already stacked in Sayori's bedroom. "That's the last of it." I said, popping my back. It was full of the last of my clothing and a few books from my bookshelf. I planned on reading some of them in the near future, Yuri had gotten me back into it.

"You only have shorts?" Sayori had a pair of my shorts in her hands, holding them out in front of her.

"Yeah, I don't really like pants haha." I helped her gather the rest of the clothes in the boxes, we put them in a small dresser she had next to her closet. I closed the drawer and opened the last box, I put Petey's dog -bed and bowls in it, as well as the pillow of Sayori. I pulled it out and held it up, trying to gauge her reaction. "Huh."

"Is that... me?" She moved in closer to see it.

"Yeah... I made it a while back."

She brushed her hand over it, "you made a pillow of me?" She looked up to me with a smile, "were you that lonely?"

I ruffled her hair up, "a little bit."

"Well you won't be anymore." She hugged my arm. I raised the pillow up and set it down on the dresser.

"Oh, that gives me an idea!" Sayori sprinted to her bed, crawling over it to the window sill. She grabbed the wooden figure I had made for her for the festival and rushed back to set it next to the pillow. "More memories!"

I tossed out the boxes after emptying them. It was official, we lived together. I walked back to her room, she was lying flat on her bed staring at the TV. I lied next to her, "what are we doing?"

"I don't know. What do you want to do?"

I thought it over, there was a lot we could do, eat, watch a movie, play a game, play with each other. "I'm pretty hungry actually, do you want something?"

"I could go for something to eat." Neither of us partook in Ryan's and Nat's meal of chips and salsa, I wasn't feeling it.

I jumped off the bed, "you wait here, I will prepare something special." I threw my hands up, like I was throwing confetti.

She giggled as I left the room "bye silly."

I walked down to the kitchen, searching through the fridge and cupboards for something to make. She didn't have many ingredients, just tv dinners and canned foods. I couldn't think of a special meal, what was considered special? If anything, I'm sure she'd appreciate any food I make. I decided upon a simple dish of fried chicken and macaroni cheese. I waited a few minutes before coming up with the meal, spending a while to make sure Petey was adjusting well to the house. He was comfortably lying on one of her couches, resting his head into the corner of the armrest.

"Bye Pete-Pete." I waved at him, though he wasn't paying attention. I opened the door to Sayori's room with my foot, plates in hand. "I come bearing food my Bun."

She sat up, "what'd you make?"

"Chicken and macaroni."

"Oooh." She reached out for the plate and grabbed the fork. "Mmm…" she breathed in the aroma, the spices on the chicken turned my mouth into a waterfall. And the cheese was as close to a liquid as I could get it. "This is really good, I didn't know I had any more macaroni."

"You didn't I had to make the noodles from scratch." I had flour on my hand still from the crafting of said noodles. I showed them to her, "see?"

"Oh, you didn't have to go so far to make them." She brought more into her mouth, her eyes showing just how delicious the food was. "Nevermind… keep making food like this please."

I chuckled and took a bite out of the chicken. "I'll make food for you every night if it makes you happy."

"I wanna make something sometime for you as well, you don't have to do everything."

"Well that shrimp and rice you made _was_ really good… okay, here let's make a deal, I'll make food on Monday through Thursday, and you'll make food on Friday to Sunday."

"Deal…"

I returned to the room after doing the dishes. Sayori was lying on her back rubbing her stomach. "I'm full."

"Me too." I sat down next to her and covered up with the blankets. I lied in silence, until she rolled over nuzzling into me. No words were needed for her display of affection. I wrapped my arms around her tightly, "Sayori." I swallowed, "Don't leave my side."

"I won't, I want to lie in your arms forever." Her shining eyes bore into mine, I relaxed my body and pulled her closer so she lay on me.

"I love you." There won't be a day where that isn't said, she needs to know that she's loved. That I want her in my life every moment. I leaned up and kissed her on the lips. I fell back trying to pull away, but her head followed keeping us together.

"I love you so much." She hugged me closely, like she would never see me again. "When schools done, we never have to leave our bed." She laughed. "Our bed, I never thought I'd say that."

"Our bed." I softly said, it was so unbelievable, yet it was true, it was happening. I sat in thought, this was the beginning of another new life, a new life that hadn't started due to tragedy. I kept my hands on her bare back, warming them up. I went to kiss her on the nose, her eyes had shut and she was floating off into slumber. She murmured some incoherent sentence as I finished the smooch, but quickly recovered and fell back into sleep.

It was like seeing a puppy take its first nap, something about it just made you want to hold it tightly, squeeze it until it exploded. There wasn't a free part of my mind that didn't scream for me to hold her. I loathed myself, because of my little surprise for Ryan tomorrow at the restaurant, I wouldn't be able to see Sayori until late in the night. Having someone else work under my name wouldn't be the same, and once I commit to something, it's a certainty.

I closed my eyes, giving her one last goodnight kiss. "Sleep tight." I whispered, and drifted off with her.


	29. Fancy Place, Daring Grace

"Bacon and eggs or sausage and eggs?" I stood in front of the heating pan, watching oil spread evenly through, a sea of fattened arteries and chest pains awaited. Not that it would matter, I could stay healthy forever, both of us could.

"Both!" Sayori yelled, through her shrieks of playful terror. Petey was supplying a full onslaught of slobbery kisses to her face. I put the bacon in first, watching the grease pop, then the sausage a few minutes later. As I started turning the sausages Sayori rushed up behind me and lunged, latching onto my back. "Gotcha!" She said, causing us both to slightly stumble backwards.

I laughed while trying to keep my balance, "you know the sausage is gonna burn right?"

"Who cares! I have you!" She squeezed me, but slowly pushed us both forward. "But, don't let it burn… ehehe."

I placed our plates down on the kitchen table and we both sat across from each other. We gave an exchange of loving glares and silly faces. I didn't want to leave her alone, but I had already made the commitment, no matter how minuscule it was. I wiped the grease from my lips, "I forgot to…" I swallowed harshly, "to tell you. But, I won't be home til late tonight."

She choked down the food in her mouth, "why not, where are you going?"

"Well, I got a job." I smiled nervously.

Her eyes lit up, "you got a job!?" It was as if I had revealed that I was pregnant, which didn't make any sense, but, that's how she looked.

"Y-yes?" I should have expected her to react that way, she did value my future. The feeling was mutual.

"That's great! Where at?"

I made sure the restaurant was in everyone's mind, that it didn't seem to appear out of thin air. "You know the restaurant by the mall?"

She spoke before I had a chance to explain, "are you a waiter, or a bus boy?"

"The head chef."

She nearly spat out what food she had in her mouth. "W-what!? How?"

I had backed myself into a corner, how _did_ I get the job? I had to think of something on my toes. She would believe me if I made a decent attempt at coming up with an explanation. "They had an opening, and I sent them a clip of my cooking… then the next day they asked me to come in to give them a taste test." That was as decent as I could've gotten on the spot.

"D-do the others know?" She must've bought it. I didn't like lying to her, there was no middle ground for it, I always felt bad.

"No, only you. But, that's where Ryan and Monika are having their date tonight, so they'll see me." She stood up and walked to my side, hugging me.

"Well, I'm glad you're taking a step in the right direction, I never thought you'd do something outside of TV and games."

"You're one to talk, you do the same thing."

"Eh… s-shut up."

"See, I caught you in the lie."

She sat back down and we finished breakfast. I was glad that she took it well, I couldn't bare to see her in any way sad. We both sat on the couch, passing the time with TV, cuddling, and other _fun_ activities. I kissed her forehead and rubbed her back.

"I gotta get dressed now." I said.

Hers arms slouched and she exhaled all the air she had. "Aw… fine."

"Don't be sad, you still have Petey!" I called him over allowing him to replace me in the kisses. I ran up to the bathroom, putting on my uniform for work. It wasn't what I was expecting, a black buttoned up jacket and long black pants. I looked myself over and loosened the belt.

"Looking good!" Sayori said, poking her head into the bathroom.

I chuckled and turned off the light. "Thanks." I leaned in and left a parting gift of my lip imprint. "See you tonight, stay sweet!"

* * *

"When did you get that?" Natsuki caught me checking myself out in the mirror. Her stares made it look like she had found me with a rare edition of _Parfait Girls_.

"Gaje got me it." I answered, pressing my tie into place. The clothes were comfortable, it had a firm grip, but still allowed maximum mobility. It was a bit strange that he knew my exact size, but I supposed that he was all knowing, when he wanted to be.

Natsuki looked impressed, not that she'd ever admit that. I let Monika know that I'd be on the way soon, I rushed downstairs and opened the door. "You'll be fine alone right?" I asked.

"Yeah," she answered annoyed, "you go have your fun."

"Alright, see you later Nat." I walked out the door and began walking towards Monika's house. I was ecstatic yet nervous. This would be our second real date. I arrived at her house, walked up to the front and knocked; a few seconds later and my angel in red opened the door. I stood in awe at her extravagant wear, the long flowing red dress, ruby in color, it shimmered like the night sky.

"You look gorgeous…"

She looked at me with impressed eyes, "you're not so bad yourself." Every step she took, the dress flowed with her, silky smooth. Her arms raised up to my shoulders. "Who'd you get to help you dress like this?"

"I had a little help from Gaje to give me his perspective."

"He really knows how to make you look sexy. Are you sure there isn't something going on between you." She eyed me, a small curved smile plastered on her face

"Nope, he just isn't my type." I said chuckling. She cocked her head to the side, she could see the boxed corsage just in my left hand. I pulled it out forgetting it was in my possession, "o-oh here, I thought you might like it, it's a corsage." I popped the plastic lid open and she slid it onto her arm, giving off that angelic smile she always did, the one that constantly melted me into a fine paste of a pathetic romantic and yearning lover.

"I love it, it's beautiful, thanks Ryan." She leaned in and kissed my cheek, brushing her dress against my pants. "We should probably get going, don't want to be late for our own reservation."

We started walking down the street together, the clacking of her shoes and the the patter of mine filled the quiet air. I don't think I'd ever get used to this, holding her hand, kissing her, going out on dates. I loved every moment we spent together, she could do no wrong. And her teasing, as much as she embarrassed me, was irresistible to me.

We cut the corner, crossing the street and coming eye level to the restaurant. Just like the picture in every way, intimidating, yet welcoming. The front door slid open, I could feel the energy of the room spread throughout. It was an aristocratic type venue, everyone had dressed up in their richest and most luxurious clothing.

We were greeted by a waiter first thing as soon as we stepped over the threshold. The man was nice, no older than 25, he had a freshly shaven face and a five o'clock shadow. From seeing him I could already see the restaurants uniform theme. They all had worn full black shirt and pants, even their socks and shoes.

"Right this way sir and miss." He guided us through the crowded restaurant, the mixture of steamed seafood and grilled meat had already begun to drive my taste buds into a rave of salivation. I knew already what I was eating, I saw a plate full of steamed shrimp, drenched in a butter sauce with a side of steak grilled to perfection.

The waiter pulled out our chairs and let us be seated, "someone will be by soon to take your order and serve you for the rest of the night, thank you for dining at _Kami no Chinmi_."

Monika and I both nodded to show our appreciation for his service and he left through the scattered tables. She looked about, taking in all of the design of the restaurant. It was truly a beautiful interior, the bright red enticing my hunger, the angle of the roof allowing the smell of food to collect and stir up into a delicious combination. Gaje had done his best to make the inside look like an actual Japanese temple, but of course he also added his own little twists, the paintings that hung around the beams usually had a very unique set of people in them, almost 100% exact copies of us and the girls.

Monika looked to me with a smile, I returned with my own. A menu dropped onto the table beside us, "hello, thank you for coming to _Kami no Chinmi_ , my name is Stacia and I'll be your waitress for this lovely evening. Can I start you out with some drinks?"

I looked to Monika, "do you want to go first?" I asked with my eyes.

"Yes, I'll have some tea please, extra sweet if that's okay."

"Of course miss." Stacia turned to me after scribbling down the note, "and you sir?"

"You guys have coke products?"

"A-huh, Coke, Fanta, Sprite, etc."

"I'll take a Coke then."

"Alright." She jotted down my drink. "And are you two ready to order? Or, need more time?"

"Uh… I'ma need more time, I apologize." Monika said.

"No you're fine, I'll be back with your drinks in just a moment!"

She walked away and I looked back to Monika, I wasn't exactly sure on what to say, I had already complimented her dress. But then again, consistency in compliments was always appreciated. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you. You do too." Her foot touched mine under the table, I could feel the stilettos hit the tip of my shoe. "How did you get the reservation for this place anyways? It looks expensive."

"Oh, Gaje. He… pulled some strings I guess."

"Seems like Gaje is doing a lot for you, I'm glad he's such a nice friend to everyone... I wonder how he 'pulled some strings' though."

I had no way to explain that, I wasn't lying, Gaje did pull some strings, some otherworldly ones. Thankfully before she thought too deeply into it the waitress had returned with our drinks on a tray. Monika put down her menu and stacked it on mine.

"Are you guys ready?" Stacia asked.

We nodded. I went first, "yes, I'll have the ebi suteki." Essentially shrimp and steak, with a little side of mixed veggies.

"May I ask if the chef may surprise me?" Monika asked.

"You most certainly can! We actually just got a new head chef this evening and he is fantastic, everything he's made has gotten the highest of praises I've ever seen."

"Wow, that's amazing. Oh, can you make sure to ask if he can do something vegetarian."

"Yes mam." She clicked her pen and stuck it behind her ears. Her booklet closed and she walked away, our orders punched in.

I felt Monika's foot tap me again, on my calf this time. She was looking off into the other direction so I thought she was just being playful. I brought my foot to her calf as well, making her smile, but she didn't look to me. I had noticed her nails were painted red just like her dress, she had her hand on her chin holding her head still. She managed to find the exact same shade of red as well, I was impressed.

Not long after, the waitress came back with our meals. When they said the shrimp was steamed, they weren't joking. There was condensation on the outer rim surrounding the already smoking plate. I could feel the humidity in my face as I moved the plate closer, an instant wave of water vapor melting onto my forehead and cheeks. I looked to see what the chef had made for Monika, there were three vegetarian spring rolls and some sort of fried rice that was lathered in soy sauce and on the side a small cup of what seemed to be a type of mushroom soup. She got the works. My meal cost forty dollars, I imagined hers had to cost at least up to fifty-five, not that it mattered, I'd be the one paying tonight and money wasn't an issue.

"Enjoy your meal." Stacia finished filling our cups back up and left a few more napkins before leaving to another table.

Monika breathed in deeply, the tantalizing flavor obviously having an effect on her. I could see the pleasure in her eyes she felt just from that whiff. "This look soooo good. I need to taste it now." She picked up the spring roll, almost instantly regretting not blowing on it first. "Ah." She stuck her finger in her mouth, "too hot. I probably should have guessed that."

I couldn't help myself from laughing a bit, "you _can_ see the steam coming off of it right?"

"Yes Ryan. Eat your own food." She replied bitterly, yet still joyous.

I grabbed one of the shrimp by the tail, unlike most restaurants, they had removed the entire shell even the tail part. Personally one of the most annoying things that seafood places didn't do, in my experience. It spread evenly on my tongue, the meat, and the water from the steam. I held my mouth slightly open, blowing smoke like Gaje did earlier in the week. "I'm a dragon, Monika." I said grabbing her attention. She bit down on her spring roll and copied me, blowing steam out and giggling simultaneously sending out small puffs. She covered her mouth because she had started laughing too hard.

She coughed violently, holding her hand up to show that she was fine. But I still had to ask to be sure, it looked painful. "Are you alright?" I asked.

" _Cough_ , y-yeah."

"Okay let's roll it back, no more of that." I laughed, picking up another piece of shrimp.

"D-deal."

The people around us had their eyes on Monika, most concerned, a few annoyed, and some even disgusted. I dared them to say something, we'd be having a talk outside. Not that I would win, but I would damn well give them a hell of a bout. A few minutes had gone by, there was the occasional filling of the cups by Stacia, and the settling of new customers at the table nearby. She had come back over to our table once we were both about done.

"The head chef would like to come out and see how you two enjoyed your meal, if that's alright with you?" She said, pointing to the kitchen, I could see a man in black sharpening knives and wiping sweat from his brow, but I couldn't make out any defining features.

"Yeah, I'd love to chat with him, it was _really_ good." Monika replied.

"Okay, just a moment let me get him." She walked off, disappearing through the kitchen's metal saloon-type door.

I wiped what little bits of food I had remaining off of my lip and stacked all my stuff on the plate. I hadn't actually had a meal I completely finished from a restaurant that made me beg for more. I felt Monika's foot brush up to me again, each time seemingly she had gone higher. I brushed her leg as well again.

"Hello madame and gentleman, I hope you found everything to your liking."

I looked up to see… Gaje. I heard Monika's unbelieving in her exhale. "Gaje? You're the chef here?"

Gaje gestured to his clothing, "ah yes, oui oui." He had the wrong accent for the restaurant.

"Wow… well, I guess thanks. The meal was, superb."

Like Gaje had sensed my questioning of his accent, he switched up to a stereotypical Asian one, "ah yes tank you vely much." He bowed, a smirk forming on his lips. He stopped using his accent, thankfully. "I hope your date was made accommodated by the fine dining and exquisite design of this fine establishment. Oh, and how are you Ryan, I hope everything has been fine at home. I know it's only been a day, but I digress."

I just stared, "I mean nothing really changed, we still do the same stuff as before. Just quieter."

"Ah I see."

"How about you, is everything fine at Sayori's?" Monika asked. "Anything, _fun_?"

"If you mean the act of intercourse, the words may be crude, but the act of fornication has been performed, yes."

I didn't understand why he was talking this way, we could understand him if he had just said sex twice. But then again… when does Gaje give up the flair of improvisation? I took the last sip of my drink, I didn't want a part in this talk. But, I was dragged into it by default.

"What about, _you two_?" He asked. "I see you're dressed up fancy, in a romantic scene, eating at each others showing heart. I can guess where things lead."

"Um, I mean, i-if that's where it leads to…" I said nervously, glancing to Monika. She didn't say anything, but I could see the blushing of her cheeks beginning to show.

"Hm, well… I got to get back, ta-ta." He strolled back through the floor to the kitchen, extravagantly.

"I can't believe he's the chef." Monika muttered, looking over the barren land of her plate.

"He is a really good chef, that's probably how we got the reservation." I stopped for a moment to collect my bearings, thinking of something else to keep this going. "...So it looks like Gaje and Sayori are enjoying each others company."

"Yeah. But I mean why wouldn't they? You've seen them together."

"I didn't think they would move in together so quickly."

"Who knows what else they'll do quickly." She said insinuating a multitude of things, marriage, children, becoming an R&B group. That's what I got from it anyways.

"Yeah maybe we'll see mini Gajes running around." The thought of it was traumatizing, I imagined midgets in my head, all with his face, each one tormenting me in some way.

"Or mini Sayoris." She laughed. While we were both lost in our own separate imaginations, Stacia had come over and left our check at the edge of the table. I picked it up to see the price, it was zero dollars. There was a small note at the bottom, "like I said, you always owe me." I crumpled the note and sighed. Of course I always did, he has the powers, I can't really stop him.

"Have you finished your poem?" Monika asked. "I really do like seeing them, you've improved a lot." It was nice to know, I was persistently nervous about showing them to her, given the subject matter.

"Y-yeah I already finished it, I think you'll really like this one."

"Oh, is it another one of your cheesy love poems? I do enjoy those so."

I looked off to the side, "It's easier for me to write a poem about the person I love."

"How wholesome." She reached her hand over and gripped mine. "You know finals are coming in a month or two... and I don't want you to fall behind. We're probably gonna stop meeting in the club in the coming weeks so we can study." The utterance of finals pierced into my brain with a boredom drill. We were close to the end of the year, it was easy to forget when I was enjoying myself so. The prospect of the Literature Club not existing was strange, but all good things come to an end.

"Don't worry, I think I'll pull through it. B-but if you wouldn't mind I could use some help."

"I was already planning on it, I can't very well call myself a good girlfriend if I can't even help my boyfriend out." I could feel her shoes rubbing against my calf again. She progressively moved it further up my leg, keeping her gaze on my eyes, and her grip on my hand tight. "And as a good girlfriend, it's my responsibility to make sure you're _satisfied_."

I felt her shoe tumble to the floor, landing an inch away from mine.

"S-satisfied? W-what do ya m…" I stopped myself, the sole of her foot was rubbing against my crotch. I looked to her, opening my mouth to say something.

"Shh, don't talk. You don't want everyone to see, do you?"

I shook my head slowly, feeling the separate digits of her toes pressing into me. I knew my face had to be glowing a bright shade of red, I could feel the heat permeating from me. I had to lean in and shield my face with the table. Her foot rubbed around in clockwise motions then she roughly stroked up and down. She kept talking on as if this wasn't going on, like everything was casual and hunky-dory. I gripped the ends of the table cloth, I couldn't take anymore. She must've sensed it, she brought up her other foot, one massaging the tip, the other rubbing the shaft.

The pleasurable feeling lasted for a few seconds, I could feel the groin of my clothes wettening and the uncomfortable stickiness of my underwear against my crotch. Her feet retracted and she slipped her shoes back on. She grabbed the check from the side of the table, "oh, how nice of him." She was expressing her gratitude for Gaje, but ignoring me, the one who had just essentially soiled himself in public. It's not like it was noticeable from far away, the black pants managed to cover the syrupy substance. "Are you ready to go Ryan?" She asked. That smirk on her face, she knew what she did, but as always, she teased. And it was hard, nay, impossible for me to be mad. That angelic grace that surfaced through even the most devilish of acts made up for everything, I was under her spell, and I didn't want to fight it. Especially one that could do _that_ and still act relaxed about the whole thing.

"Y-yeah."

She stood up and walked to my side, covering me up with her large dress. "My house. You know what's happening." Her hand made its way onto mine, a welcome parasite to suck the angst out of my heart. She rubbed her thumb around my palm, the softness like a royal's hand woven silk fabric from the 1800s. I moved through the lobby, my legs practically not parting when I walked.

She pushed me down on her bed, she had already done with her dress and was sitting on top of me. "Take your clothes off, hurry up." Monika was impatient, she really wanted this as quick as possible. Perhaps she was a sex maniac. I was prepared for this, I had a condom in my pocket.

My underwear fell to the floor and I rolled the condom on, I didn't know how much it would change the feeling, it was cold, that was all I knew in that moment. Monika positioned herself just against the tip and without warning entered it entirely, my head forced me down and I had a momentary blackout. I could feel her bouncing up and down, going faster with each movement. I tried to move my head up but was instantly brought back down by her lips. There was no resistance, her tongue invaded and conquered my mouth. Her hands moved to my face and pushed us in closer, not letting me escape her clutches. My hands moved and grabbed ahold of her butt. A loud moan emanated from her mouth as she was still stuck to my face, I could feel it vibrate throughout my skull. The feeling was unbelievable, the hyper aggressiveness of her movements made my mind spin in pleasure and ecstasy. Our lips finally parted, I could finally inhale some air. I was reaching my limit, "I-I'm cumming."

"You can't, hold it!" Was she insane? It's not something I can control. I looked at her with an exasperated grimace, her eyes bore into mine, "if you stop, I'm going to kill you," they said. I fell back to the bed, trying to think about something else, something to stop myself from going insane. Puppies? Cats? Oh I hated cats, maybe it would work. No, it didn't. I couldn't stop.

"I-I." I tried to speak but no words would come out. My brain was malfunctioning, not able to process the sensation shooting into my spinal cord. My hands had taken on a task of their own reaching out and shoving her down as hard as possible onto my lap. They couldn't allow any more movement. I huffed and huffed and huffed. I knew she was probably looking at me with disappointment, but the state of euphoria that had taken over didn't allow for my empathetic personality to interfere. She looked down at me with _those_ eyes. It was like she had caught me kissing another woman, or stealing something extremely valuable.

She sighed and got off of me, "you couldn't just wait five more seconds?"

No, I could not, I don't think she understood how good she was. "It's, _huff_ , really hard when your that rough. I can't handle it."

She didn't reply, I could see her out of the corner of my eye pushing up against the pillows and spreading her legs wide for me to see. "You have to finish this." My body was already trembling from the erratic beating of my heart, I could hear the engine inside me sputtering and dying down. I crawled over, exhausted, but a servant who always served to satisfy.

A disgruntled, "okay." And I moved over to finish the mission.

* * *

The restaurant was actually pretty fun, I had worked in one before, but as a dishwasher, very fun times; I always got sick after work ended and fell asleep in a cold sweat. I walked through the starry night, it was silent as usual, not much happened around here, and that was fine by me. I hated silence, but when I was alone with my thoughts I preferred no interruptions. I watched my feet as I crossed every cement slab in the sidewalk, there was a slight stain from spilled mustard and vegetables. I gazed up at the moon, a full one that night. It lit up the sidewalk in a blue radiant light, though incomparable to Sayori's radiant blue.

I wondered how she had fared with Petey, what she watched, or played, what she ate. Tonight was technically her night to cook food for both of us, but seeing as I was at work, it didn't matter. I just hoped she was able to enjoy whatever food was around. _The Red Mark of Arrival_ , that's what I had dubbed that streak on the corner, I passed over it and found myself walking through our gate. And into the house, where I was met by an excited girl, leaping into my arms. A kiss on the face, and a relaxing warmth in my heart. I loved her, and she loved me, which was more than I could've hoped for. We wound down and eventually found ourselves resting in our bed, in our room, in our house. I had so many thoughts concerning the future, mostly what we were gonna do when school ended. God, imagining having no literature club was strange, but inevitable. Perhaps we could still meet up somewhere and do those. Maybe I'd create a building where people could share their poetry and sell their books. A library, Gaje, that's a library. Maybe I'd create one of those.


	30. End of School

I enjoyed new routines, especially ones like the one I formed with Sayori; that warm fuzzy feeling waking up next to her and then waking her with a kiss, joining each other in a hot shower, and eating a steaming breakfast together at the dinner table while Petey begs for scraps. It was Monday, we were all sharing our poems, unfortunately for me Sayori had already snuck a look at mine. I had to scold her genteelly and then make a new one. I wrote it on Sunday night and hid it in my backpack. It was a cinch making poems about her. I always had more to prove to her, and it surprised me. I never thought I'd be so adamant about proving my love.

Monday morning, instead of reading as usual with Yuri, I requested her permission for me to practice my cadences for the poem.

"Sure, I'll practice mine as well, if that's alright with you." She said.

"Yeah, I'm fine with that, shoot." I replied.

She unzipped her bag, there was 20 or more different folders inside, with five different colors. She had everything organized by category, I knew she was methodical and efficient, but this took it to a new level that I hadn't seen before. Her nails moved through the bag like a filing cabinet, separating the individual folders. She eventually pulled a plain blue one out and grabbed a small sheet of paper from within.

"Do you want to go first?" She asked.

I had my paper in lap, frustratingly holding it down, protecting it from the small unspecifically timed breeze. "Uh... yeah." I stood up and brought the paper up to my chest level and began to read. I usually had prior practice so my stumbling was at a minimum, but not today. I would stutter or make some incoherent blabbering every so often when I messed up. Yuri's eyes winced each time. I glanced up, awkwardly meeting her gloomy face.

"So?" I asked, expecting something harsh, but with a soft delivery.

"It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good. I see why you always talk about practicing in the mirror. Here, you should add some more pauses around..." She stood beside me, pointing out certain areas on the paper where I should hesitate with my reading. I marked them with the pen she gave me, I could see her slight smile as I held it up. "And..." She started again. "...make sure you stand tall when you read, you slouch a bit too much, I know Sayori won't mind, but remember, you're performing for the entire club."

"Got it." I nodded and she sat back down. I read through it a second time, this time, only flinching once, but it was a slip of the tongue. Again, finishing with no stutters this time. I sat down and allowed her turn to read.

She started out with that _oomph_ she provided at the festival and practice we had beforehand. No pause. No slow start, just out the gate commanding voice and great delivery. I had nothing to add, nothing to advise, her writing was on point; the metaphors made you think it through over and over, and the message was well hidden beneath her complex phrasing.

"That was perfect." I said plainly.

"You don't mean that..."

"Yes Yuri, I do. There's nothing for me to complain about." She came back over to the bench, I looked over at her impeccable handwriting. Her eyes read the poem, questioning the validity of my answer. Her self-confidence had improved over the month, she had no more stutter, but she did still talk in a manner that was indicative of a pushover. She was still improving and that was the important matter.

"Thanks." She muttered. "I'm glad Monika decided for us to do this, I'm actually enjoying sharing my writing with you guys." I was as well, even if I knew it was coming. Like everyone else in the club, except maybe Ryan, I loved writing poetry.

"I'll see you at the club." She said, following the bell's order.

I sat out in the courtyard til lunch, pulling out a box of homemade food. Sayori had a similar one, both apart of our meal deal that we had made. Ryan sat down on the bench, not so much as a "hi" which I didn't mind, we didn't need to say it.

He eyed my food. "did you make me some?" He asked in a begging manner.

I narrowed my eyes and slowly turned my head towards him. "Are you my girlfriend?"

"Will I get free food?"

"You get everything free. But, you aren't her."

"Oh, I see how it is, fine, I've got somebody better anyways."

"I'd hope so, if all my help went into the gutters I would be quite sad."

"I _am_ thankful for your help."

I bit down on my sandwich, the moisture from the lettuce and ham hydrated my tongue as the bread soaked up the excess. I looked to Ryan, he was swirling his finger around the rim of his soup cup. He looked bored, but I felt as if I should say something, it made me uncomfortable and I was worried that he wasn't well.

"So, sucked any dicks lately?" My form of an icebreaker, when it came to really good friends. I liked to push boundaries in friendship so I knew we could speak freely among each other.

"I don't believe I have... why?"

I pointed to my crotch, "it ain't gonna suck itself." It was a double edged joke, I hated blowjobs. I hated that image in my head, the saliva and gagging, it made me gag.

"I'm going to have to decline that offer... So. Is that job at the restaurant a permanent thing? Or..."

"It's sorta permanent. I'm gonna make enough money to kind of launder my unlimited wealth so it doesn't seem suspicious."

He nodded slowly, "makes sense. I still don't know what I'm going to do for my career. I mean, I don't want Monika to think I'm some sort of bum."

"Yeah, but, I don't think she'd care if you were, you could be like a stay-at-home dad." I knew in the previous world he wanted to become a professional in the esports community, but there wasn't one of those here, not on a huge scale. "I don't know though, you'll have to talk it through with her if you want."

"I guess I can, I just don't want to be useless."

I patted his shoulder, "you're not useless Ryan. You're worthless."

"Thanks Gaje, that makes me feel better."

"I try. Sayori enjoys my lavish use of words, though the eccentricity of it can be quite, indignant."

"Speak English Gaje." AKA, dumb it down a little, I forgot what that word meant.

"Sayori likes when I talk crazily to her, even though sometimes it sounds resentful."

"Oh. Okay."

 _Bing bong_ went the bell and _scrunch scrunch_ went Ryan's shoes as he walked. "I'll see you later Gaje, don't want to keep Monika waiting..."

Fourth period ended, it was customary for me to pick Sayori up and walk with her to the club. We were like a ball and chain, always interlocked. Her hands always rose up to my forearm, making me feel like I had to flex, but I kept the temptation in my mind. We walked into the club, Monika wasted no time shuffling over to the podium and calling for our attention...

"Alright, who wants to go first?" She asked, her head moving in instant motions like a bird, showing the full extent of her jubilant eyes.

"I will." I raised my hand, Sayori clapped lightly as I stood. With the advice Yuri had instilled in me I stood tall, my shoulders flat, not slouched, and read. "The title of my poem is _Eternal, Joy, Future_."

 _Eternal, the connection we have_

 _The love I feel_

 _The future I see_

 _Eternal_

 _Joy, what you give me_

 _What I hope to give you_

 _It's what our love shows_

 _Joy_

 _Future, we have a long one ahead_

 _Sprinkled in prospects of marriage and children_

 _It's not only time, it's evolution of feelings_

 _Future._

Everyone clapped as I finished, Sayori nuzzled into my shoulder as I sat, her soft exhale conveying all the effects it had on her. Natsuki went up next, it was simple, yet deep. She had written about her father and how she felt safer now thanks to us. It warmed my heart. Monika took the stand, her poem was strange, the usual type I wrote. Sayori went next, trying to hold on for as long as possible as she stood, brushing her hand from my elbow to fingertips. She swayed behind the podium as she read, her head moving with the words. Happy and joyful, that's all the writing showed. Yuri finally got up, reading the poem I had heard in the courtyard, and then finally, Monika called up Ryan.

"Alright." He pushed off the desk and grabbed his notebook. "My poem is called, _My Angel_."

 _You are my angel, my one and only,_

 _My forever love, so we'll never be lonely._

 _You've come into my life with your love and care_

 _It made me see when I realized how rare_

 _It is to meet your angel in a lifetime._

 _What you've done, you've illuminated my soul._

 _It's you and your love that has made me whole._

 _The feel of your love, your soft touch and caress,_

 _We're tight, so close; your heart beats in my chest._

 _All that we have always felt missing before._

 _Though I love you today, tomorrow it will be more._

 _Our love is life; we are the strongest tree,_

 _Which will always grow forever, like you and me._

 _You have opened my heart and held it so dear._

 _You are my angel and will always keep it near._

 _You help me get up when I'm down._

 _You are my angel; I just needed you to know._

 _You entered my life through a ray of sun above,_

 _And when we leave, we will leave together in love._

 _My love for you has become my reason to be._

 _You're the only one for me, Monika my one true love._

He had the longest out of the bunch of us. It was as blatant as mine and Natsuki's. This sense of thermal energy radiated in my mind, I never thought it possible that I would feel the need to be competitive with Ryan. Perhaps it was the fact we both expressed ourselves in our poems, but my head kept telling me, "hey, you need to kick his ass next time, what the fuck are you doing?" And I headed its words, my next one was much, much, better.

"Alright, since we're finished and have a bit more time to go, I have some remaining things to discuss." Monika clicked her pen and sheathed its point. "As you guys know, finals are in June, and in about a week or two we're doing school round study sessions. So I've decided next week, will be our last week in the club. As sad as it is."

None of us responded with words, I felt a small tinge of disappointment in my stomach, but I knew it was coming.

"Aw... c'mon Monika, there's still plenty of time." Natsuki moaned.

"All you do is read your manga anyways Nat, you can do that at home." Monika pointed out.

"I know that, it just feels... I don't know! Different!" She was right about that, it had become so common that the thought of it being a thing of the past was scary. Our home away from home, was being demolished for a newer model. Monika had the right idea though, it was important for them to study, they all had things they wanted to do, and from what I collected they, for the most part, wanted to attend college.

Sayori had to study just as hard, she always seemed to struggle in her classes, at least that's what I learned from her random comments throughout the day. "Calculus is hard," "why don't they just keep it to numbers?" "I'm struggling with this really badly Gaje, can you help me?" I couldn't let her fail, it was my responsibility to ensure her success. We all packed up, tomorrow the schedule Monika had assigned would be back to normal, until the fated day of closure...

Sayori flopped onto the bed, bouncing up momentarily from the bite back of the springs. She hugged each end of the bed, like it was a giant fluffy bear who kept her safe. Like it was me. "Ah... home sweet home." She rolled over and held her arms out towards me, "lie down with me!"

"Why wouldn't I?" We bumped our shoulders together and looked eye to eye. "Now what?" I asked.

"Now we lay here and talk about... things!"

"Things."

"Yes."

"Yes." There was a lot I could talk about, school, how she felt, what she wanted to do with her life, if she ever wanted to move somewhere, etc.

"What do you want to do after finals are done?" I asked.

"I don't know." She shook her head. "I want to study art at college, or, maybe I don't... I, I don't know."

"You could definitely do art without college, you have talent and skill, you'd probably make the history books."

"You really think so? Or are you just saying that to make me feel better?"

"I'm telling the truth!"

"Everyone always says something like that, but I usually find everything wrong with my drawings."

"That's how I am with writing. Even if I know it's okay, or people compliment it, I always see the wrongs. That's just part of being an artist. Or a human in general."

"Yeah..."

"Okay next question... how do you feel right now, as a whole?"

"I'm..." she cracked a bright smile. "Happier than most times, like the day we met kind of happy." To her that was years ago, but for me only one, since the game had been released. But either way, the feeling was the same.

"I'm glad." I said. "I know you talked about the rain clouds, do you still get them?"

"Yeah... but then I think of what you told me! That they're wrong." Her hand grabbed mine, "how about you? How do you feel?"

"Happy enough to shed a tear everyday we wake up next to each other. I'm alive, now and forever, because of you." Truth, and it will always remain that way. No amount of troubles, bumps in the road, or outer influences will change it. I cuddled up to her, holding her deep in my grip, a priceless artifact needing protection. It brought me more feelings than explainable each time, it was a once in a lifetime emotion, that I got every day...

"You know, when May gets here I'm not leaving your side until you are fit to ace all of your tests." Even if it meant I had to stay up all night, keeping us both awake.

"Do we _have_ to?" She lolled down and looked to me, her mopey eyes meeting mine. "...okay. But you're making the food. I need good brain fuel."

"Deal." I said.

And so forth the days passed, Monday to Friday, then the weekend, and the final week of the club. Our last meeting on that Friday, Natsuki made us a large parting cake and cookies, Yuri made some fresh tea for everyone, and I brought everyone mini sandwiches. It was like a feast to celebrate a worker's retirement.

"It's been a pleasure guys, running the club, and having the greatest vice president I could have asked for." Monika said, making Sayori blush. "I hope everyone does well in the finals."

"Yeah! This has been the best year of my life!" Sayori exclaimed, her shining grin able to pierce even Vantablack.

We all nodded and toasted with our tea. I snuck away from Sayori for a moment while she was devouring her cake and gathered some of the others, asking Monika to keep her preoccupied. I had a special gift for Sayori prepared for graduation, and I needed their assistance.

"W-what?" Ryan almost choked on his cookie. "Oh, Jesus. Wow, uh, more power to ya, I didn't expect that."

"Yeah, don't you think that might be over the top?" Natsuki said.

"I think it's romantic." Yuri commented...

Then that was the end of our meeting, we were all done. No more poems, no more reading with Yuri or Nat, it was just Sayori and me at home studying whenever school ended. Yuri had no longer met me outside in the courtyard, she spent her free period in the library. Not hearing that distinct inflection of her turning the page with her index and thumb was odd. The familiar breathing that intensified when the book got exciting, it was a thing of reminiscence. Ryan still came out to visit me during lunch, I felt like an elderly women left in a retirement home waiting for her family to visit. "Where's my grandson Ryan? When is my granddaughter going to show up?"

Sayori and I spent the first few days slacking off, making it certain that we had to work extra hard for the rest of the month. She needed no assistance in Art. Math was always the area that I struggled, I had a teacher in 10th grade who didn't teach us correctly and I just gave up then and there. I had to fill my brain with the knowledge to explain it, which felt like cheating, but I couldn't understand it otherwise.

The ease at which I had to work through our new daily routine made me wonder about life as a father. It seemed easy at the time, even with me working and cooking I still felt energetic and ready for more. Having kids would give me more to do, with the added bonus of something physical to show Sayori's and my love.

The week for finals crept up, like a hermit crab hiding in sand. I clawed my way through the crowd to see what room I had to go for exams. It was the second time I had seen any people in my class. I aced the finals I had in record time, a certified genius. If I hadn't have cheated. Sayori always came up to me after school, excited and adamant that she did extremely well. "I knew everything on that test, thanks to you!" She would say. When school finished, Sayori took a long deserved break, she had earned it. She passed all of her classes with flying colors.

"Just lay on your stomach." I said, pointing her to the bed. "You'll like it, I promise."

"But I want to get some candy..."

"Later, this is my congratulation gift, just, please?" She deserved time to relax, to feel weightless and have no worries burdening her.

It took a bit more convincing, but she finally did as I asked. She took off her shirt and pants, exposing her cute buns in those yellow panties. I grabbed a bottle of lavender oil, Yuri had given it to me on the club's final day. "It makes me relaxed, and it's a good mood enhancer. So... if you want to spice things up with Sayori..." She ran off after that comment, no amount of confidence would stop her embarrassment. I rubbed the oil into my hands and sat over her, pushing my hands through the knots in her back. The cute exhales she made sounded so sensual.

"That feels great… ah…" She said.

I leaned in, "do you want the happy ending treatment as well?"

"Mhm..." She spread her legs and I rolled down her panties to her dainty ankles. I grabbed a more delicate water based lubricant from her desk and coated her butt, softly parting her cheeks and spreading it.

I rubbed my thumb around her outer lips for two minutes, then lightly did the same to her inner lips. I was following the direction of a website I had found less than an hour ago. I massaged her clit, I could hear her breaths getting harsher and her vagina began to swell. Her body slowly rocked from side to side, then her legs stuck out as far as they could, her feet pointed straight outward as she orgasmed.

I allowed her a chance to catch her breath. It was always times like these when I lost my cognitive thinking and went with the flow. "More?" I asked.

"Y-yeah." She answered wearily.

I took off my clothes as well and climbed onto the bed. I slowly entered myself and laid atop her, nibbling on her ear and kissing her neck. The precious moaning she emitted was a specific tune for me. She moaned loudly with every waking moment, she could be as loud as she wanted, the pillow concealed most of her volume. "Nnn...NNN!" I could feel herself pushing into me as I thrust, her vagina wrapped around my dick tightly, forcing out concentrated shots of jizz. I rolled off to the side, a smile on my face and the beating of my chest in my ears.

"You... still owe me, sweets. But, we can get it tomorrow." She turned her head. I hugged her closely, pressing my overly sensitive member onto her slippery cheeks.

"Anything you want." I said.


	31. Happy Now?

**_Dear Sunshine_**

 _The way you glow through my blinds in the morning  
It makes me feel like you missed me.  
Kissing my forehead to help me out of bed.  
Making me rub the sleepy from my eyes._

 _Are you asking me to come out and play?_  
 _Are you trusting me to wish away a rainy day?_  
 _I look above. The sky is blue._  
 _It's a secret, but I trust you too._

 _If it wasn't for you, I could sleep forever._  
 _But I'm not mad._

 _I want breakfast._

* * *

"Sayori are you dressed?" I yelled up the stairs, graduation was going to begin within the hour.

"Almost!" She poked her head out of the bathroom door, "have you seen my bow?"

"It's on your head." I said.

She patted her head confused, then stopped, "oh. Ehehe, I'm ready then.

She turned off the light and rushed downstairs, driving Petey wild. He hopped about like a deer prancing through the wild. He still never barked, but he was able to emit small _woofs_ and _whimpers_. I grabbed his collar and guided him out to the backyard."We'll be back soon Petey, go, play!" I shut the door and turned to Sayori. We were both wearing a black robe and cap, the little dangling rope was right on her nose. I locked the door and we began walking to the school.

Graduation was inside, for which I was grateful, it was a rather warm day outside, though that wasn't what was going to make me sweat like crazy. I had no idea how she was going to react and I have never gotten in front of so many people. I could've broke down right then and there on the sidewalk, over 2,000 people would be staring at me.

Sayori knocked on my forehead. "Anyone in there?"

I shook my head, her sweet smile was contagious, I smiled too. "Y-yeah?"

"You were just standing there. Come on we're gonna be late if you don't get a move on!" She grabbed my hand, dragging me along; it was just like the first day at school, but I was prepared this time and able to keep up.

The school towered over us, watching us with its terrifying eyes. This was it. The last time we'd be back here. And because of that, it meant a new routine. Routine, routine, routine, I tried to keep my life confined to a routine. I do diverge from them a lot however, so I suppose I am a hypocrite.

Sayori's hand gripped me tighter, her heart was racing, her palms were sweaty. "This is exciting, but I'm a bit scared."

"Not as scared as I am. You can practically hear my heart screaming, listen." I kept quiet and pulled her closer to my chest. "Ahhh!"

She giggled and wrapped her arms around me. "Don't be scared Gaje's heart, I'll protect you!" She looked up to me with thankful eyes.

"Are you ready?" I asked.

"Yeah."

We opened the gym doors, Sayori's face went pale. She groaned softly, "this is a lot harder than I thought."

"It's okay." I held her hand, our minds calming at the touch. We walked across the vinyl flooring, conversations shot back and forth from each side of the gym. Random words made their way into my ears, I felt like I was at a concert. I searched around for the others, then spotted Monika waving her arms around, she waved us over next to them. We sat at the end of the section they were at, right at the bottom, closest to the floor. You could hear the whine of the metal underneath as more weight was applied to it. As I looked about to the sections of students, I felt pain in my stomach. It wasn't a pit, it was akin to an abyss, an abyss that contained an evil spirit who was laughing at my pain. My spirit was strong enough to fight it, but it wouldn't matter, the bout would take too long.

The principal tapped the mic on the stage, grabbing the attention of the room. "Alright, settle down everyone." His voice resonated through the room. The room quieted down, not a peep was heard. "Welcome, class of 2018, it is that time of year again where we teachers and staff congratulate you all on a job well done. It is the time of year where all of you move on to bigger and better things, jobs, school, families. We're gonna get started, but first a round of applause to all of you."

Everyone clapped, parents, family, and students alike. This was it. The end of my rope, the second time my school days ended. They began calling up students, each time they would shake the hands of the teachers, grab the diploma and shake the principals hand. When Ryan and the others stood, Sayori and I cheered until they came back. Sayori wanted to see their diplomas, and it seemed to be easing her mind. They went through every student, except for Sayori and me.

After everyone was called it was my turn. "Gaje, and Sayori." The speakers sounded off. My spirit was losing the bout with the abyssal demon. Was this the right idea? It was too late for me to go back on it, and if I did, I would be a jackass. I let Sayori walk up onto the stage first, she shook the teachers' hands, one by one then walked over to grab her diploma. I did the same. She was stopped by the principal, he gestured towards me, and she looked over.

The principal nodded and grabbed the microphone. Sayori mouthed "what's happening?" to me, to which I held up a finger to let her know to wait.

"Ladies and gentlemen." The principal was making this entire scene all the more dramatic. "One of your peers wants to make an announcement of sorts, please give Gaje your full attention." He walked over with the mic in hand, "good luck son."

 _ **A mic. Why?**_

I didn't want to be heard by them all, I had already signed my death warrant by thinking of this, but to have every single person hear it as well? Why not just burn me alive and be done with it. Sayori eyed me confusingly as I tapped the mic and paced nervously. I looked to the others who smiled back at me, egging me on with their joyous nods.

I tapped the mic, the slight whine from the feedback made my head coil to the side. "H-hello, everyone." I turned to the crowd. "My name is Gaje." I had to think of what to say, it's not like I had a prepared speech. "Uh... personally, this has been the best year of my life. For, a, um, multitude of reasons. My girlfriend Sayori, the Literature Club, my friend Ryan. It's made this a memorable time, and I'll never forget that."

I turned to Sayori, an instant amount of heat hitting me as I saw her. "A-and I wanted to make it even more memorable." I walked closer to Sayori, she was still confused. "Sayori." I knelt down, her eyes widened and I felt even more pressure in my voice.

"Sayori... w-will you, marry me?" Once those words left my mouth, there was no turning back, I was too invested to rewind if she said no.

Her arms squeezed me tightly, she fell to my level and looked to me, her eyes covered with forming tears. "Yes! I will." The mic fell from my hand and I hugged her back, I could hear the others whooping in the crowd, and Monika's cheering. I had called it a gift, I guess in retrospect it was probably more suitable to say a surprise. I hated narcissists, and I didn't want to come off as narcissistic. But, to her, it _was_ a gift, one of the best she had ever received. I slid the engagement ring I had made onto her finger and stood up still hugging her. Graduation ended, the word of our engagement was still buzzing through the crowd as we made our way home.

It was only a few days later when we both started bickering in the living room. Bickering is wrong, it was more a one sided concerned comment from me. "Quit stressing so much Sayori, I told you I would handle it."

She closed her laptop and looked to me, "you can't do everything Gaje... You need a break too."

I grabbed her hand and pulled her off the couch. "Come on..." I pressed my forehead into hers and locked our hands together. We progressively swayed side to side. I started to move my feet and she followed, dancing along. "We can't get married if you're too tired to stand." I said looking into her eyes.

"Neither can you." She pouted.

"Sayori. I am more than capable of handling all of this. I need you plump and edible for our big day, not tired and mopey."

"Aren't I always edible?"

"Touché. Look, how about I give you another massage, is that a suitable exchange?"

"Maybe..."

I wanted a big beautiful church, whether or not it was religious mattered not, it was customary and looked grand. Kaleidoscopic glass windows, sunlight beaming through it, shining down onto us. Ryan would stand on my side as the best man, the girls would be Sayori's bridesmaids. I was going to be a husband at the age of 20. There'd been younger, but not in a world made by their own spirit, and definitely not with a fictional character who turned real.

The days dwindled down to the week before we were to be wed. Sayori and I were separated, "for our own good." As Monika had said. I was not to see the dress or Sayori til the fated day. I had to stay at Ryan's for the time being. We sat on the couch watching TV, Natsuki was out with the girls as well, so it was just him and me. I felt like I was in some sort of withdrawal, my stomach ached and I was just... off.

"Do you think she's okay? I haven't heard anything from them." I asked. My innermost thoughts came to me, not to help, but to worsen my feelings.

"I'm sure they're all fine." Ryan has a good sense of friendship, especially when it came to me. He attempts to calm my mind a lot, and he does well, he's experienced my overreactions before, so it wasn't new.

"But, what if they got hit by a car or something? What if she's lying in pain crying out for me and I'm not there!?" I wanted to crawl into a ball and stuff myself into the corner of the couch.

He paused the TV, "Gaje. Shut up. Everything is fine man, trust me. Nothing bad is happening."

"But I can't see her, I don't know that for sure. And, I can't spy on her, that would mean I have zero trust in her, but... I need to see her." I wiped my face, "Monika hasn't texted you or anything?"

"Nope, they're keeping us both in the dark. She'll be back in a little bit, just wait til your wedding."

"A week is a long ass 'bit' Ryan." I groaned.

"It's almost over, don't worry."

I looked at him, eyes narrowed, "yeah, that's sure to help me."

"You just need a distraction, how about we-"

"Fuck?" I finished.

He raised his brows and looked off to the side, his head nodding. "That is tempting, but no."

"What _can_ we actually do? Besides everything, I don't feel like sitting here watching anime and no ideas are swimming around my head."

"Why don't we go to the arcade or something. I bet it'll be fun."

I sighed and stood up. "Let's go then."

Everything reminded me of her. The sun in the sky,her glow; the skate rink, our first date; the restaurant, her happiness that I found a job. The reality of the situation hadn't hit me. Sayori and I would be husband and wife, for eternity. Connected. She would be a part of my family tree. "You good?" Ryan asked, noting my odd staring into the sky. I always nodded and we kept moving. I was more than good, but my head was being overloaded with emotion and I didn't know how to react.

The arcade was packed, usually it was filled with kids and parents, but now it was full of high schoolers. It had become a hotspot for summer vacation. I bought a pass from the cashier that allowed us infinite tokens, at the exorbitant price of $300. I walked up to the first game I saw, _House of The Dead_. Ryan joined me in every game I played. Over time, as he had said, my mind was no longer making me worry.

"I can't believe I'm getting married." I muttered. My father would've been proud, and so would the rest of my family. They didn't care my sexuality, who I loved, just that I was happy with my life. And, I finally was, fully. I had a purpose, I knew what I wanted, and I had someone to share that with. I looked to Ryan as we walked to the next machine. "I'm getting married." I said.

"Yeah dude, I'm happy for you. It's only a matter of time before Monika and I do too. But probably not for a long while."

"Think Sayori's as excited as I am?" I wondered if she was going just as mad as me, not being able to touch each other or see each others face.

"I think she's ecstatic. I bet you she's waited for this moment ever since you started dating."

"Saje for life." I said, regretting it. It still left a sour taste in my mouth, it was weird and cringe. But when it wasn't. "That'd be a great name for a boy... and Zoella, for a girl." I looked at Ryan for confirmation, was I thinking a bit too ahead?

He hummed, "I'm digging it."

I found myself laughing a lot for the rest of that day, kicking Ryan's ass in _Street Fighter_ the first moment, then having my ass handed to me the next. This was an overwhelmingly positive moment in my life. I had some sort of internal force telling me to smile, to move in certain ways, it wouldn't go away. We walked into the dead of night as the arcade closed, I took in a deep breath and smiled widely. That force exerted on my mind vanished.

The night sky was breathtaking as always, I had never seen such bright clusters of stars. I pointed up, "hey, Ryan, watch this." The stars in the sky began changing, they swirled around, leaving large clouds behind them, the end result: a brown swirly star cluster that looked like a cinnamon roll. "That's the _Cinnamon Cluster_."

"That's pretty sick dude." He held up his hand, doing the devil horns. I chuckled and we walked home, I kept my eyes on the cluster the entire time...

I straightened my tie, neatly tucking it into my vest. I picked up my comb and wet it, slicking back my hair shortly afterwards. I looked myself over, my tux was shining, like freshly varnished wood, it smelled of steam from the iron, and my shoes looked like a portal into space, complete blackness. I tapped my toothbrush against the rim of the sink and dropped it onto the counter.

"Gaje! Come on! You're going to be late!" Natsuki yelled, the girls had assigned the task of watching me to her, not that she had to, I wasn't keen on breaking rules.

"Hold on!" I yelled back. I flicked off the light and ran down the stairs, my heels clacking against the wooden steps. We left quickly, hurrying down the sidewalk in the direction of our school. The church was a mile down from it, just next to the opening of the forest. Natsuki lead us along, but then stopped us in our tracks.

"Okay, you guys wait here, I'm going to see if they're ready yet."

"Aye aye cap'n." I said, saluting with two fingers.

She looked to Ryan, "you watch him," her eyes seemed to have said. Ryan nodded and we both watched her walk away. I ground my heel into the ground, hearing the crunch of gravel. I felt lost, I had been to weddings before, but I never truly paid attention. I wanted to grab Sayori and run, but I also wanted to view her in a dress, how mind numbingly beautiful could she be?

"How long do you think she'll take?" I asked Ryan, catching him off guard. He was staring off into the forest.

"Oh... um, I don't know, like... 10-15 minutes? Something like that."

"I wish there was somewhere to sit." I snapped my fingers and sat down on a small wooden bench. I patted the other end and Ryan leaned back in it.

"So this is it." I said out loud.

"Yeah... you're finally going onto the next stage." He kind of chuckled, "time went by so fast."

"Seems like only yesterday you fell through my roof."

"I can still feel the pain of hitting the wood... and the pain of losing that game."

"Now you'll never get to plat."

"I don't care anymore..." he said somberly, a hint of bitterness still in his mouth.

"Now you gotta go through the ranks with Monika."

"Yeah, and that's a hard grind indeed."

I chuckled, "a very hard grind, if you catch my meaning."

"Shut up Gaje, you're becoming a husband, act like it."

"How different is that going to make me, exactly?"

"More responsibilities."

"Such as..."

Ryan sat quietly, "such as..." he stopped and looked down, "taking care of the house, Sayori, and most likely some kids, you have to set good examples."

"Well, I already do the first two-"

"More responsibility!" He exclaimed.

"I'll deal with all of that after the wedding." He wasn't wrong, I would have more responsibility, not that I wasn't already doing it, but now I would have to do it even better. No slip-ups allowed, complete and utter attention required. I looked up to the sky, I could've sworn I saw the clouds winking back at me.

Natsuki came back out in a huff, "okay! They said you can come in now, so hurry up."

We all walked into the shade the building provided. The glass from the doors reflected us perfectly, black, black, white, the colors of our clothing. Natsuki opened it up for us and Ryan and I pushed through to the lobby. "Go on." Natsuki gestured to the doors, we followed her command and broke through, coming to the aisle of rich red carpeting and shining wooden benches. There was a man at the end of the carpet, dressed in all white robes, I presumed he was the priest. He held his hand out as Ryan and I moved up and shook our hands.

"Congratulations." He said.

"Thank you." I replied, turning to face Ryan with a nervous grin.

The doors opened, Yuri and Natsuki walked up to the stage with us, wearing bright white. Ryan and I had on dark black, a perfect contrast. I understood that white dresses were tradition, and I vaguely remembered the tradition being set up by a queen, but what did it signify? In Yuri and Natsuki, probably the majority emotion was discontent. Oh, but when the piano tune began, and the room's silence was swiftly cut by the squeak of the double doors opening once more, the truth in the significance of white had made its point clear. It was beauty, purity, dignity, everything I could wrap up into a baked good. My Bun. My delicious, satisfactory, euphoria inducing, contagious, giggling bun.

Monika guided her down the aisle, their arms linked. Sayori's cathedral dress extended out seven feet behind her, she had a smile on her face that put pressure in my eyes, pressure that caused a water leakage in my tear ducts. I wiped my eyes with a finger. It was just month after month, of my life getting better and better, and now… we're at the near peak of the mountain.

I gazed into her eyes, the blue yonder, the mysterious depths, the loving orbs. Everything she was, set me off.

"Dearly beloved, we are here today…" The priest said. "...do you, Gaje, take Sayori, in sickness and health to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"Until my heart stops beating, I do." My lips quivered, my smile growing brighter.

The priest faced her, "and do you, Sayori, take Gaje to be your husband, through thick and thin, sickness and health, to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"Of course I do." She said, as if to infer anger at his questioning.

"Then, by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you, husband and wife. You may kiss the bride..."

I never understood the idiom, "I'm on top of the world," until just then. Dipping Sayori back, kissing her and feeling every raw emotion pouring into my mind. I was posing on the beginning of the universe. I did what I set out to do, I went through everything I knew was coming, now it was all unscripted, no foretelling of the future, no hints. Just Sayori and me, floating on a cloud of our own love. You are the one desire I hold in my heart, when the world is crumbling down, when the nights are long, when the days are exhausting, I know you're there, waiting for me. Sayori. My happiness.

* * *

 ** _Dear Happiness_**

 _The way you beam through my heart every morning_

 _It makes me feel like you're the one I need._

 _Returning a loving gaze to help me stay afloat._

 _Making me stand up tall._

 _Are you the one who I'll love forever?_

 _Are you trusting me to brighten up your day?_

 _I look down, I see you bloom._

 _It's no secret I trust you._

 _If it wasn't for you I could sleep forever,_

 _But I'm not mad._

 _Do you want breakfast?_


	32. Epilogue

March 27th, 2023.

Well, it's been five years since that day, and I'm currently writing it down in my notebook. Today's been, pretty wild, what with the kids' birthday just around the corner. They're turning five. Yeah… Sayori got pregnant not long after the wedding. I'm pretty sure it was during our honeymoon trip to the beach. I wasn't expecting two kids, but we sure as hell got two. One boy and one girl, almost too coincidental. Their names are Saje and Zoella, as I had discussed with Ryan. Sayori loved the names, but to be honest I think after pushing them out of her, she was looking pretty hazy so…

I digress, everything's great. I no longer work at the restaurant, I bought it, so I have all the time in the world to stay with my three favorite people. And Sayori's working from home, pursuing her art career. We both saw the kids' first steps, their first words, I… I'm overjoyed. I'm a bit worried about their future, I'm not sure how I'm going to help them if they have issues.

I still keep in touch with everyone; Monika and Yuri are off at college while Natsuki and Ryan still live at his house. Last time I asked, Natsuki was steadily climbing in popularity on Youtube as a manga reviewer. I'm not sure if she does anything else exactly, but she's getting money. Ryan, he's still lazing around, he doesn't really need to do much, but he works on the yard a lot every day so he's keeping busy.

Sayori and I come over to their place sometimes, bring the kids around. Natsuki likes them, I think she's trying to act out the ruined childhood she had with them. Most of the time we hang around the entire day, but sometimes Sayori and I need a little alone time. They don't mind watching the kids, which I'm grateful for.

Well, Sayori's calling me down for dinner, and Saje is standing at the doorway. So I guess I'll write this last bit and be done with it. I love Sayori, the kids, this house, this world. When all is said and done, I'm happy now and I'm looking forward to the rest of my life.

End of day 86. March 27th, 2023.

* * *

 _Thank you everyone for reading. It pains me to end it, but this is a suitable stopping point to me. I wouldn't get your hopes up, if you have any, for a sequel, I'm not sure I'll write another, even though I'd like to._


End file.
